MX23RW : Thursday, October 31 23:47:24| >> :120:5704:5704:
[monks data]
Attendance: 30,096
Southampton logo
Premier League | Gameweek 29
Mar 7, 2020 at 3pm UK
 
Newcastle logo

0-1

FT(HT: 0-0)

Ralph Hasenhuttl backs Moussa Djenepo to give Southampton squad a lift

Ralph Hasenhuttl backs Moussa Djenepo to give Southampton squad a lift
© Reuters
The Mali winger had been granted compassionate leave after the death of his mother.

Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl hopes having Moussa Djenepo back with a smile on his face again can help kickstart their Premier League season.

Mali winger Djenepo missed last weekend's defeat at West Ham having been given compassionate leave following the death of his mother.

Hasenhuttl accepts it has been a difficult spell for the 21-year-old, who joined from Standard Liege during the summer.

"Moussa is back now from the funeral for his mum. He seems to be getting into a better mode again," the Southampton manager said. "It was not easy for him. We tried to help him as much as we can."

Hasenhuttl expects Djenepo to be available for Saturday's home Premier League match against Newcastle.

"It always helps if you are on the pitch and doing what you like to do the most," the Southampton manager said at a press conference broadcast by the club.

"That helps you not to forget, but to get a little bit of deflection from what is around you at the moment.

"It has shown every day since he is here that he is getting his laughter back again.

"I like to see him laughing and don't like to see him when he is sad. He was not really in a good moment when he came back, but now it is getting better and better.

"We are all helping him to get back to the Moussa we know, because he was always the most positive guy in the squad.

"This gives the whole squad a lift sometimes because he enjoys his job so much and was always positive for the team. Now we try to bring him back in this mode."

Striker Danny Ings started on the bench against the Hammers, with the club mindful of his workload.

"It was good that Danny was rested last week because the risk was too high. It was a good decision, although we missed him a little bit," Hasenhuttl said.

"He has trained well this week and is absolutely hungry to score again.

"We need him for important goals and he has some qualities which are special for us."

Hasenhuttl, though, revealed midfielder Stuart Armstrong will miss out after it was confirmed he had suffered a concussion early on during the West Ham game.

After hauling themselves clear of the relegation zone, Saints have now lost for four of the last six league matches.

"We know that we did not make our best game last weekend, so it is about us to show up again with a different performance," Hasenhuttl said.

"On our home ground we want to show a good reaction and I am sure the players know what it is about."

ID:391955: cacheID:391955:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4002:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
West Ham United's Jarrod Bowen shakes hands with manager David Moyes after being substituted off on February 29, 2020
Read Next:
Rice hails "top notch" teammate Bowen
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City97202091123
2Liverpool97111751222
3Arsenal95311710718
4Aston Villa95311611518
5Chelsea95221911817
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton94411612416
7Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest9441117416
8Tottenham HotspurSpurs94141810813
9Brentford94141818013
10Fulham93331212012
11Bournemouth93331111012
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle9333910-112
13West Ham UnitedWest Ham93241316-311
14Manchester UnitedMan Utd9324811-311
15Leicester CityLeicester92341317-49
16Everton92341016-69
17Crystal Palace9135611-56
18Ipswich TownIpswich9045920-114
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves90271225-132
20Southampton9018619-131


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!