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Southampton: Elyounoussi becomes 7th Norwegian Saint

By Marc Walker

OSLO, NORWAY - MARCH 23: Mohamed Amine Elyounoussi of Norway during International Friendly between Norway v Australia at Ullevaal Stadion on March 23, 2018 in Oslo, Norway. (Photo by Trond Tandberg/Getty Images)
OSLO, NORWAY - MARCH 23: Mohamed Amine Elyounoussi of Norway during International Friendly between Norway v Australia at Ullevaal Stadion on March 23, 2018 in Oslo, Norway. (Photo by Trond Tandberg/Getty Images) /
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New Southampton signing Mohamed Elyounoussi has joined a lengthy list of Norwegians to have played in the red and white stripes.

The 23-year-old completed his transfer from Basel to Southampton last week for a reported fee of around £16m and comes with a reputation for providing creativity to the teams he has played for.

Scandinavia has been provided the Saints with some talented players over the years and this looks to be continuing with their latest recruit.

Goalkeeper Antti Niemi hailed from Finland, Michael and Anders Svensson from Sweden and current midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg is Danish.

Elyounoussi has now become the 7th Norwegian to join the club and below are the previous six to have played on the South Coast.

Next: Saints to move for 6ft 2in Italian striker?

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Vegard Forren (2013) – Joined for around £4m in the January window of 2013 but moved back to previous club Molde just five months later after failing to settle in England. No first-team appearances for Saints but played three times for the club’s U23s side. Spent time at Brighton more recently but failed to settle again.

Stig Johansen (1997-1998) – With the club for one season but only made six appearances in the Premier League before moving to Helsingborgs in Sweden. Joined after having a good scoring record in Norway with FK Bodo/Glimt.

Claus Lundekvam (1996-2008) – A club legend who racked up 372 appearances in his 12 years in England. Reliable Centre-Back who formed many solid partnership’s with various teammates, but was infamous for only scoring twice for the Saints. Suffered with injuries and off-field problems at the end of his career.

Egil Ostenstad (1996-1999) – Joined from Viking FK and became a fans favourite over his three years at the Dell. Scored two in the club’s 6-3 win over Manchester United and bagged 29 overall in 96 matches.

Trond Egil Soldvedt (1999-2001) – Joined from fellow English side Coventry City and played 30 times for the Saints, scoring two goals. Transferred to Sheffield Wednesday in 2001 before ending his career back in Norway with Hovding IL.

Jo Tessem (1999-2005) – Spent the most longest part of his career at Saints and managed 116 appearances and 13 goals from midfield. Along with Lundekvam and Ostenstad, is one of the players able to make his mark properly on English football.