Charlie Austin faces a battle to get back into the Saints team when he makes his long awaited injury comeback.

The popular striker is still the club’s top scorer this season with nine goals in all competitions, despite having not played since he dislocated his shoulder against Hapoel Be’er Sheva at the start of December.

The painful injury required surgery and has left Austin with an extended period of rehab and recovery to get through.

He is now starting to turn his attentions towards a return to training, and could force his way back into the reckoning after the next international break.

However, the form of new signing Manolo Gabbiadini means he will likely have to be patient and wait for his chance.

Gabbiadini’s six goals in just four games has helped lift Saints’ season.

The very presence of the Italian – combined with a change in formation – has transformed Puel’s side from a team that struggle to score goals to one who are prolific.

In the four games that Gabbiadini has played at Saints they have netted an average of 2,75 goals per game.

Saints were fairly potent with Austin leading the line earlier in the season, with his 14 starts yielding 17 goals for the team at an average of 1.21 per game.

But in the games in which neither have started – which are the majority numbering 22 across all competitions this season – Saints have averaged exactly one goal per game.

Partly as a result they also have an inferior overall record, with ten defeats in those 22 games as opposed to just five in the combined 18 matches in which either Austin or Gabbiadini have started.

If Austin may feel that he faces a battle to get his place in the team back with just one striking spot up for grabs, his return will cause further problems for Shane Long and Jay Rodriguez.

They have scored five goals each in all competitions this season, but neither has been able to get a consistent run in the team, partly due to rotation earlier in the campaign and also form.

If Puel does think of Austin and Gabbiadini as his two frontline options, then Long and Rodriguez will slip further down the pecking order and a question will arise over whether they will both remain at the club after the summer.

Both are at a stage of their respective careers where they want to be playing regularly, and the reality of being third, and potentially even fourth choice, is unlikely to appeal.

Rodriguez will have two years left on his Saints contract this summer and is not short of admirers despite having been unable to reach the heights he achieved before an injury wrecked couple of years.