MOHAMED Elyounoussi admits Saints’ six-year pursuit of his signature makes him sure he will be a roaring success at St Mary’s.

The £16m signing from Basel, who is this afternoon hoping for his second appearance in a Saints shirt as the club take on Dijon to round off their pre-season trip to France, was tracked by Saints since he broke into the professional game in 2012 with Norwegian outfit Sarpsborg 08 under the guidance of former England striker Brian Deane.

Saints have kept an eye on him as he went onto play for Norwegian giants Molde and Swiss side Basel, finally signing the 23-year-old at the end of June.

It’s some insight into the long-term vision of Saints’ recruitment system that they’ve tracked the Norway international for so long.

“It’s good because they’ve been keeping an eye on me since 2012,” the attacking midfielder said.

“It’s been a long time and that makes me confident that I can trust the club and come here and be myself because the only thing they are expecting from me is to do the same in Basel; to play my game and to try to create chances.”

“It’s almost a little bit creepy that they’ve been stalking me for so long, but that means a lot that they’ve been tracking me like that,” he said with a smile.

“They know my qualities and now I’m here to get better as a footballer. I’m really sure that I’m going to do it here.”

Saints boss Mark Hughes was also well aware of Elyounoussi before his arrival at St Mary’s and all these factors combined made it a really easy decision for him to come to the South Coast.

“They know me and the system suits me as well, so for players coming in it’s something to think about,” he said.

“For me it was a really easy decision to come here.

“It’s the best league in the world. The progression has been good so far. The boys have been treating me really well and I’m really happy to be here.

“It’s easy because a lot of the players are the same age as me and there are now a couple of Danish players (Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Jannik Vestergaard) so I can speak Norwegian with them.

“It’s a really good group. That’s what I’d heard before I came here and I can only say that that was true.

“The people around the club as well are treating me really well and I’m looking forward to being part of the club and I’m excited to get started.”

Elyounoussi is pleased to be working under Hughes, who was given a permanent contract at Saints after keeping them in the Premier League last season.

“He did an amazing job last season when he came to save us from relegation and he knows me from before and I think how I want to play football suits the club as well with the formation and the system,” he said.

“He’s good with the boys and I think we’re going to be ready.”

Despite trips abroad to China and now France with the club, Elyounoussi is pleased with how he’s settling in England.

He said: “It’s a really good group and really easy to come into. They’ve helped me a lot on the pitch and off the pitch.

“It takes some time to settle down and get the things sorted I need with property and a car and everything.

“But the club are really good and helping me out with that.”

When asked what Saints fans can expect from him this season, he said: “I’m an offensive midfielder, I like to get on people to create chances, either for others or for myself.

“Basically that’s it, but also defensively to work hard to fight for the points. If you can see my records from before, I had a lot of assists.

“That’s what I will try to bring here as well.”

Elyounoussi has experienced the level in the Premier League before, having played against Manchester City, Manchester United and Arsenal in the Champions League with Basel.

“I’ve played against team in the Premier League before so I know the level and I’m confident I can help the team offensively,” he said.

“I’m not worried at all that I can’t take the level and in the end there’s 11 players and we have to give everything in every game to reach out goals.”