Southampton desperately need inspiration - Could Djenepo provide it?

And all that desperation has led us to a somewhat surprising potential saviour: Moussa Djenepo.

The truth is that no one player is going to be able to drag Saints out of the mire they find themselves in. The hole is too deep and the frailties too numerous.

But at a time when Saints require a shot in the arm to give themselves even a tinge of hope, perhaps Djenepo can be that needle.

READ MORE: 'No conviction' Bednarek laments Saints scoring struggles after Man City chance

In a dramatic and destructive season for the club, it’s been a bizarre year for the Malian winger. Having completely fallen out of favour in the second half of the previous campaign, many expected him to depart in the summer.

But not only did he stay, he remained at St Mary’s to play a crucial role in the final months of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s tenure, operating as a left-wing-back as the Austrian boss trialled a back five system.

Six starts in Saints’ first eight matches of the Premier League season led to Djenepo signing a new three-year contract at the club but from that point he largely disappeared once again. 

Moussa Djenepo trudges off the pitch with his Saints teammates after defeat to Manchester City. (Image: Stuart Martin)

In the time since Saints' 1-0 defeat at Villa Park in September, Djenepo has started just one more league match, getting hooked at half-time of his side’s Boxing Day defeat to Brighton.

The 24-year-old hadn’t even made the matchday squad in six of nine games leading up to Saturday’s clash with Manchester City while playing a total of zero Premier League minutes under Ruben Selles.

But when the reigning champions rolled into town, Djenepo was back on the bench. And with his side trailing 3-0 after 69 minutes, Djenepo was back on the pitch.

It didn’t take long for him to make an impact.

Receiving the ball on the left flank from Kyle Walker-Peters, Djenepo seemed to stumble as he controlled it before cutting inside to beat Kyle Walker.

In a flash, even as he seemed set to trip and fall to the ground, Djenepo bypassed a tackle from Bernardo Silva before side-stepping an outstretched Ilkay Gundogan leg. Limbs flailing, body lunging one direction to another, Djenepo composed himself long enough to feed Sekou Mara who made no mistake with the first time finish.

Speaking about Mara’s maiden Premier League goal, Saints boss Ruben Selles made sure to highlight the work from Djenepo to set it up, saying: "Last game against West Ham he (Mara) did not get the chance to do it but today he got the chance. Moussa (Djenepo) did a fantastic action and he has brought us back into the game. Unfortunately, we conceded after.”

A pure agent of chaos, Djenepo can’t fully ever be trusted and consistency is not something that can be expected of him. But the guarantee with Djenepo is that he will try and he will play as he is as a personality: an optimist.

Sekou Mara celebrates making it 3-1 against Manchester City. (Image: Stuart Martin)

Always trying to make something happen, Djenepo doesn’t seem to believe in holding back, aiming to move at the greatest pace he can muster at all times. When you’re looking to operate a disciplined approach set up to survive - as Saints have seemingly done for much of this season - then perhaps Djenepo isn’t the right man for the job.

Djenepo is a wild card. His own team hardly seem to know what to expect from him, let alone his opposition. But on a Saints side that hardly ever looks like scoring, perhaps that wild and unpredictable nature is exactly what they need.

On Saturday, Djenepo attempted five dribbles, the most of any Saints player and the same amount as the initial attacking quarter managed - combined.

Djenepo always wants to create an opening and the positions he takes up - as well as what he tries on the ball - makes that clear. Below is Djenepo's touch map against City compared to that of Moi Elyounoussi and Theo Walcott.

Granted it was a different task for Saints when Djenepo came on as they chased the three-goal deficit but he still managed to get into more dangerous positions than either Elyounoussi or Walcott did with triple the minutes on the pitch.

Djenepo probably isn’t the answer. That’s the truth of the matter. But no one in this Saints squad has proven themselves capable of solving the gigantic goalscoring problems they’ve had.

Only Everton have scored fewer Premier League goals than Saints this season while they’ve averaged a startlingly low 0.75 goals per game since Selles replaced Nathan Jones.

There’s no more time for caution. It’s time to get brave. And is there a braver member of this squad with the ball at their feet than Djenepo?