Under-23s boss Radhi Jaïdi has been discussing how his young side have worked on developing a winning mentality this season - starting out 2019 with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Stoke City last week.
The three points, valuable in their quest for promotion, lifted Jaïdi's side into Premier League 2's top spot, but that has since been occupied by Reading - who have played a game more.
Saints can indeed regain the league lead with a win today, and welcome back the experience of Alfie Jones to the fold, as well as Tyreke Johnson and Marcus Barnes, who have both enjoyed stints with the first team recently.
"It's about improvement and development, but it's also about developing these boys to win football matches," Jaïdi commented.
"That's as much about psychological aspects as it is about physical and tactical.
"We'll match Middlesbrough up, player for player. They have some quality, but we'll have a few experienced boys returning.
"We don't focus too much on the table. But I want to see a good performance, full of intensity and tempo.
"That's been key to us winning games recently."
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