Ralph Hasenhuttl doesn't want Celtic star Moi Elyounoussi back; suits us fine

By Euan Davidson

January 22, 2021

Celtic star Mohammed Elyounoussi has had two impressive seasons on loan in Glasgow.

Yet, he’s clearly not done enough for Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl. The Saints boss has confirmed he won’t be looking to recall Elyounoussi, despite an ongoing injury crisis at the club.

The Moroccan-born Norway international has netted 13 times in 27 games for the Bhoys this season [Transfermarkt]. Still, despite Hasenhuttl’s squad lacking depth, there’s no chance his stay at Celtic will be cut short.

When asked about recalling the winger, the Southampton boss told Hampshire Live:

“No, definitely not.

“Maybe if we had more long-term injuries, we have two at the moment with Michael Obafemi and Will Smallbone, but the rest could be back quickly, so it doesn’t make sense to bring anybody back.”

The Austrian boss is said to be monitoring his on-loan players very closely. Perhaps there is a route back into the first team for Elyounoussi. Nonetheless, it doesn’t look like a good situation for the Norwegian international.

Mo Elyounoussi in action for Celtic / (Photo by Alan Harvey/SNS Group via Getty Images)

Celtic star Elyounoussi happy where he is

Celtic winger Elyounoussi has boasted an incredible output while at the club. The former Basel and Molde star has scored 20 and assisted 18 goals in just 49 games.

The 26-year-old is clearly committed to the Celtic cause. Just earlier today, his comments about manager Neil Lennon made for interesting reading.

Elyounoussi said [Daily Record]:

“The players need to take more responsibility as well. It is not always on the coaches, it is on us as well. We need to dig in deeper, fight more for the points.”

He seems to have really bought into the culture at Celtic, and is a mightily productive player when he’s on the pitch. That makes it more baffling that the staff at Southampton just don’t fancy him.

With only 19 games under his belt for the Saints, it’s only on the south coast of England that he hasn’t prospered. His goalscoring rates for Molde, Basel and Sarpsong are frankly frightening for a winger.

At Basel alone, he was involved in 53 goals in just 84 games [Transfermarkt].

With injuries to the likes of Nathan Redmond, Moussa Djenepo, Nathan Tella injured for Hasenhuttl, you’d have thought he might regret sending the winger out on loan again.

Perhaps it’ll never work out for Elyounoussi at Southampton. If that’s the case, and the Premier League outfit look to move him on, Celtic should head any potential queue.