Manolo Gabbiadini has called on his Saints teammates to enter the international break six points better off, beginning with Sunday’s trip to Brighton.
Sofiane Boufal’s stunning late winner against West Brom earned Southampton a first league win of the month last time out and fellow forward Gabbiadini is keen to see the feel-good factor around Staplewood continue into this weekend's encounter.
“You always get a boost from a good performance or a great goal like that," he said, “especially if you have been watching on, waiting for your chance like Sofiane had."
It was a moment that certainly did not come as a surprise to Manolo who knows all too well of his creative colleague’s mercurial talent.
“He is a sensational footballer. He is lacking a little bit of consistency at the moment but I have to say that he is up there as one of the best technical players that I have ever worked with. He can do anything he wants with the ball.”
Brighton now stand between Saints and back-to-back Premier League victories it what should be considered as a must-win game in the eyes of the Italian.
“They showed against West Ham that they never give up, and that applies to every side in the top flight. It doesn’t matter who you face in England – it could be Man City, it could be a team in League 1 or League 2 – if you’re not committed then you will lose.
“We need to win. You can do that by being more aggressive or less aggressive, having more of the ball or less of the ball. Ultimately, after a good result, everyone feels better and the details are less important.
"Our target has to be to enter the international break with six points from these next two matches. We want to end this little period on a high."
Although a further step forwards at the Amex Stadium would have Saints looking upwards at the top eight, Gabbiadini insisted that his side’s objective for the campaign remain unchanged: to work hard and be able to look back in May with pride.
“Our target this season is to finish as high as we can. If we have the quality and expectation to finish fifth, tenth of fifteenth then that’s where we ought to finish.
“The most important thing is that we put ourselves in a position where we can look back on the season and know that we gave our all. That is the only way that we and the fans can be satisfied with what we have achieved.”
And a word on former Atalanta team-mate Ezequiel Schelotto, now of Brighton?
“Schelo is a good player, he was impressive in our year together in Bergamo, joining Inter the following season. He never stops running, so it will be an interesting battle between him and Bertrand down our left.
“I have fond memories of him but I hope he struggles on Sunday!”
Share this: