The midfielder has been out for Southampton with injury since December and his absence has been felt as the options in the midfield are thin at the moment.
The 25-year-old was having a pretty consistent season until he was plagued with the injury bug. According to WhoScored.com, Lemina was carrying an average match rating of 6.87 (for comparison, Nathan Redmond is carrying an average match rating of 6.85). Even more impressively he has a pass success rate of 86.1% while completing an average of 41.8 passes per match.
His offensive creativity has been sorely missed. Especially, in the last few matches in which teams dropped back and allowed Southampton to have possession. If we learned anything from the past few matches, it’s that the Saints struggle to breakdown deep-laying defense and create chances.
Lemina’s ability, on the ball, to dribble past defenders and make accurate passes would have been helpful breaking down the defenses of the teams in the last few matches. When he returns to full fitness it will be interesting to see how Hasenhuttl re-introduces him into the squad.
Will he start again or will he be brought on later in matches as an attacking sub for the likes of Romeu?
Personally, I believe the partnership he created with Hojbjerg would be beneficial for the team if it was rekindled. He offers more on the offensive side of the ball than Romeu and defensively just as solid as the Spaniard.
It will just be a matter of time for Lemina to return, he underwent a procedure not too long ago and is rehabbing his way back to full fitness. He may not play for a couple more months but could be an important figure in the run-in for Saints.