Full-back Cédric was delighted with the determination on show as Saints overcame Swansea at Liberty Stadium last night, in what was billed as a 'winner takes all' affair.
Ultimately, the three points were valuable enough to all but secure Premier League survival for Mark Hughes's side, unless Swansea are able to make up the points gap and a ten-goal deficit on the final day of this season's nerve-wracking campaign.
A tension-filled evening was eventually settled by Manolo Gabbiadini's 72nd minute winner, and Cédric believes that after a string of near-misses in recent games, Saints have finally obtained the result they deserve.
"It is fantastic, of course we should never be in this situation again. We've learnt a lot from this. How to survive and how to fight back in these difficult times," the Portuguese expressed with emotion.
"The big players step up in difficult times and we did it, congratulations to all my team-mates and I'm happy to be able to step up with my team.
"We've worked harder to improve, the luck hasn't been with us in a few games but we stayed together. Big thank you also to the staff and coaches, they've been very important in this.
"I've always said the same, it's another final. This was a big final for us and I face it that way. On the other hand, you need to play the game in front of you and I was there, trying to play with heart and head!"