Southampton forward Michael Obafemi appears to be back in training after the Saints’ official club website posted a gallery featuring the 19-year-old.
Southampton posted pictures of their Tuesday training session in the lead-up to their Premier League clash on the weekend versus Sheffield United. And in the gallery, Obafemi can be seen taking part.
Obafemi picked up an injury after featuring for Southampton in their 1-0 win over Fulham in the EFL Cup. The Irish forward scored the only goal of the game as he sent his team into the Third Round of the competition – which will see them take on old rivals Portsmouth.
The attacker only went off with cramp in that fixture, but he did not feature again for the Saints before the international break.
Considering Southampton will be missing key player Nathan Redmond this weekend (Evening Express), the return of Michael Obafemi could be a welcomed one.
Ralph Hasenhuttl also confirmed that Obafemi was in training sessions and said that the youngster would be an ‘option’ for the club this weekend.
He said: “Michael is in training sessions as well as Ryan, they are both options. It has been good to regroup over the break, we’re looking forward.”
Furthermore, the Southampton coach was coy on Moussa Djenepo, not confirming whether or not the Malian forward will be able to feature, despite saying that he looks ‘better’.
He added: “With Moussa it looks better; we aren’t sure whether it is enough to play this weekend. We’ll have to look.
“He can bring us something special, he showed it in the few minutes he’s played so far that he can make a difference.
“The chances are not that big, but let’s see. I don’t want to take too much risk because it’s a very busy September.”
Obafemi has made just the one sub appearance so far this campaign, so it is likely that he will be desperate to make the most of the potential absentees by putting in a good performance to stake a claim for a first-team place.
With Obafemi getting six Premier League appearances last term at just 18, he will want to start establishing himself within the squad now he is getting slightly older.
He looked very exciting before he got injured versus Fulham, managing to grab a goal, so Hasenhuttl will know he’s got a potential option from the bench who can make an impact.
Southampton fans, glad to have Obafemi back? Let us know in the comment section below!
