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Southampton: Saints winger Boufal joins Celta Vigo on-loan

By Marc Walker

LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 31: Pablo Zabaleta of West Ham United battles for possesion with Sofiane Boufal during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Southampton at London Stadium on March 31, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 31: Pablo Zabaleta of West Ham United battles for possesion with Sofiane Boufal during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Southampton at London Stadium on March 31, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images) /
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Southampton winger Sofiane Boufal has joined Spanish La Liga side Celta Vigo on a season-long loan after falling out of favour at St Mary’s.

The Moroccan’s bust up with current Southampton boss Mark Hughes at the end of the 2017/18 campaign saw him excluded from the team and he has now been forced to move abroad to find regular first-team football.

Boufal publicly stated his desire to move away from Saints this summer back in May and has had fairly uneventful time in England since his move from Lille in 2016.

Just four goals and three assists have come for the 24-year-old in 59 appearances for Saints who, at the time, paid a club-record fee of £16m to sign him.

His new side Celta Vigo finished in 13th place in La Liga last season but were a comfortable 20 points above the relegation zone.

Next: Is being Saints manager Mark Hughes' best opportunity yet?

LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 16: Sofiane Boufal of Southampton walks to the dugout for the start of the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Southampton at Selhurst Park on September 16, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 16: Sofiane Boufal of Southampton walks to the dugout for the start of the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Southampton at Selhurst Park on September 16, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images) /

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Boufal was brought in by Saints to provide creativity following the sale of Sadio Mane to Liverpool, but he has never managed to piece together consistent displays in the red and white stripes.

One moment of brilliance from him came in the 1-0 win at home to West Brom last season when he produced a mazy run from the halfway line and netted the winner late on.

The addition of both Mohamed Elyounoussi and Stuart Armstrong to Mark Hughes’ squad for 2018/19 looked to have pushed Boufal down the pecking order anyway despite him training with the U23s.

His poor form in the Premier League saw him not included in Morocco’s squad for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, and he currently has just three international caps to his name.

Boufal and striker Guido Carrillo were left out of the travelling squad to China at the beginning of this month and now both players have been sent out on-loan.

Carrillo joined up with former Saints boss Mauricio Pellegrino at Leganes for the season and it looks like he doesn’t feature in the club’s long-term plans either.

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