Buoyed by Joe Aribo’s classy goal and display against Villarreal, Saints coach Ralph Hasenhuttl insists the midfielder “can definitely be a goalscorer”.
Aribo scored a stunning solo strike in the 2-1 pre-season defeat to the Yellow Submarine on Saturday.
The former Rangers man picked up the ball before the halfway line and proceeded to trick and bully his way through four players, before finding the top corner of Pepe Reina’s goal, reminiscent of Diego Maradona’s goal against England in the ’96 World Cup.
The Nigerian then followed it up with a header moments later to put Saints ahead, but the linesman’s flag was up to rule it out.
Gerard Moreno added to Yeremy Pino’s strike to give the Yellow Submarine the lead, however, it remained a good outing for the Saints.
Asked about Aribo’s contribution, after he was also impressive in victory over Monaco on Wednesday, Hasenhuttl said: “I think it more and more shows the further up front he is the better he is.
“I know he can play different positions but I think up front as a striker – especially with his body – we don’t have so much. He can definitely be a goalscorer for us.”
He continued: “The season starts now and we can see how may big moments we get, but sure we are all here for creating big moments for the people and the fans.
“The Premier League is an unbelievable product and we can all be happy to be a part of it.”
Hasenhuttl pushed Aribo further up the field during the second-half, after he had initially operated in the middle of the park alongside James Ward-Prowse and Romeo Lavia.
“We played a 5-2-3 in the second half to send a little bit more pressure up front, also a little bit more risky,” Hasenhuttl said.
“Sometimes you are ending up one against one at the back but you have to do it if you want to put them under pressure.”
