Youssef Safri may return to the Southampton side for the trip to Crystal Palace on Saturday after an early exit from the African Nations Cup.The midfielder, who is captain of Morocco, was expected to be away until mid-February with his country thought to be likely to qualify from Group A at the very least.

But an opening 5-1 win over Namibia was followed by defeats against Guinea and hosts Ghana, meaning an early exit from the tournament for the Moroccans.

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