Sofiane Boufal has given Mauricio Pellegrino a selection headache ahead of the trip along the South Coast to Brighton on Sunday.
Sofiane Boufal's wonder goal against West Bromwich Albion on Saturday came out of the blue and that is the problem for Mauricio Pellegrino, can that 45 seconds of footballing genius be turned into something more substantial and warrant a starting place at Brighton ?
Boufal's form at Saints last season was not outstanding although it could be said that could have been down to the issues that all the players were facing and our lack of goals.
This season started little better for Boufal though, 19 mins as sub in the opener against Swansea City didn't show enough to make the manager send him off the bench and into the action against West Ham in the second game, add to that a less than thrilling start against Wolves in the League cup and in the Premier League in a 2-0 home defeat to Watford and there weren't many Saints fans thinking that he should start ahead of even the (in their opinion) underperforming Tadic or Redmond.
However in the trip to Stoke City his appearance on the hour seemed to spark a revival of sorts and although this would be undone by a sloppy late goal given away, those present generally agreed he did at least look willing to run at the opposition and have a go.
The following game against Newcastle again saw him look lively and his introduction just before the hour mark again seemed to spark a mini revival, leading him to perhaps hope that he might start against West Bromwich Albion the following week.
But it would turn out to be just the opposite, not only was he on the bench again, but despite Saints failing to break down a resolute negative West Brom defence, with 10 minutes remaining he was still not on the field, very strange given our lack of even a goal scoring opportunity being created at that stage.
Then came his introduction and the rest as they say is history, but what does Mauricio Pellegrino now do for a tough trip to Brighton.
The big question is whether Boufal is better used as an impact player in this sort of game rather than being played in the early stages when Saints may have to graft and match power rather than skill.
The player himself will not agree with that verdict, but it seems likely that Mauricio Pellegrino will make that call and keep Boufal benched, although it is likely that he will use him a lot earlier this time around.
So the question is what wouldyou do if you were the manager, would you start him or do you not think that this is the right game. Vote in the poll using the link below.
https://www.fansnetwork.co.uk/football/southampton/forum/211160/should-sofiane-b