Ralph Hasenhuttl insists he has no problem playing Cedric Soares or Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg despite the fact that their contracts are running down.

Cedric admitted in an interview that he will leave St Mary’s when his contract expires at the end of the season.

There is less clarity over Hojbjerg’s situation, but his deal is also comes to an end next summer.

It has the potential to be a distraction for the individual players and the club, but Hasenhuttl is not concerned over selecting them.

He said: “They are professionals and I think they both know we only have to discuss something if we stay in the league and if not it’s not about a discussion for a new contract.

“The first thing we have to do is to make it clear we stay in the league and to do that we must win games.

“I don’t need more on the weekend to have the chance to get three points. If I have this I don’t care about extending contracts or something like this. It’s about winning.”

Cedric could be an option to face Everton tomorrow after recovering from injury and Hasenhuttl says he will pick the best team to face the Toffees rather than worrying about the Portuguese international’s contract situation.

“I will pick every player who helps me,” he insisted.

“They have a contract here and it’s not a coincidence that they are with us because they are good enough and as long as they are here I trust every player and when a player shows me he is in good shape he is welcome to help us.

“If he’s back after injuries it’s a good sign because I have one more option on this position.”

He added: “In the moment we have other problems and other issues and every discussion about signing or extending contracts we put on ice until Christmas because first we all look to focus on our work on the pitch and it’s necessary to put in all the effort they have.

“I don’t discuss any player if he leaves or not. We discuss our performance and that makes most sense.”