Djenepo can fill gap left by Mane at Southampton

Malian striker looks capable of ending the long search for a goalscorer, says Ben Findon

The television screen in the Brighton press conference theatre was tuned to Anfield, where Sadio Mane was tormenting Arsenal’s defence. Down on the stage, Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl was lauding the man who might just finally fill the double-digit scoring gap left by Mane’s departure to Liverpool three years ago.

The summer arrival of Malian winger Moussa Djenepo may not have created much of a stir beyond Hampshire, but the former Standard Liege flier could emerge as one of the Premier League’s more significant new faces and the answer to the prayers of the St Mary’s faithful.

Djenepo had been on the Amex Stadium pitch for just 78 seconds, after being introduced as a 53rd-minute substitute, when he ended an electrifying surge with a beautifully curved finish to set Southampton on the path to a 2-0 victory.

It broke the stalemate in a tight, tense south-coast derby in which Brighton, reduced to 10 men following the dismissal of Florin Andone after half an hour, posed plenty of problems throughout for a Southampton side searching for their first points of the season.

Replacing a striker of Mane’s quality is certainly a tall order –

even for a talent factory such as Southampton – but his £34million move to Merseyside in 2016 left a hole that has never been adequately filled. Since then, no Southampton striker has got into double figures for a season and goalscoring has become a chronic problem for successive managers.

The latest candidate appears to have many of the qualities required since arriving in a £14million deal in the summer.

Djenepo, 21, who represented Mali at this summer’s Africa Cup of Nations, caught the eye in a cameo performance in his debut against Liverpool seven days earlier. That set the stage for a show-stealing display at the Amex where he again came off the substitutes’ bench, this time to devastating effect.

Hasenhuttl said: “In the winter we wanted to sign Moussa, but it was not possible. We stayed working on this transfer and it’s important that the player sees we really want to have him and the philosophy we want to play.

“I think it fits good to him because we try to transition quick and that is one of his biggest qualities and one of the reasons why he decided to come to us.”

Hasenhuttl joked as he recalled Djenepo’s initiation song in the team hotel before Saturday’s match. “His scoring is better than his singing,” he said, but it shows how quickly the newcomer has settled into life at the club.

Nathan Redmond, who confirmed Southampton’s win with a close-range goal late on, said: “I think everyone can see around the training ground how much of a fun and bubbly character he is.

“He’s still only young, but with glimpses of ability like that I think the fans should be excited for some of the forward play we’ve got going for us this year.”

And so to the inevitable Mane comparisons. “I’ll let you do those comparisons – you seem to love those, but I’m happy with what he brings to our team,” Southampton’s Jannik Vestergaard said. “If he can come in and be anywhere close to Sadio Mane that’s the one for us.”

Brighton suffered their first defeat of the season in a game that could have yielded some reward despite Andone’s red card for a rash studs-up challenge on Yan Valery.

Indeed, had substitute Jurgen Locadia found the back of the net instead of clipping a post in the 87th minute, few would have begrudged Brighton’s battlers a deserved point.

Graham Potter, the Brighton manager, said: “We were brave with the ball and took on a good team.

“It was an even game in terms of opportunities, but it’s obviously difficult when you go down to 10 men.”