Manager Ralph Hasenhüttl was beaming with pride following Southampton's victory over reigning champions Liverpool on Monday evening.
Such was the emotion of the win, the manager was visibly moved at the full-time whistle, dropping to the floor before congratulating all of his players individually for an outstanding performance.
The team, missing a few first-team regulars, contained 11 players that originated from the club's Academy, with Hasenhüttl reserving praise for the impact of the younger members of the squad on a special night at St Mary's.
"I cannot say how proud I am of my team," the Austrian exclaimed. "I think the mentality we showed today, was the perfect one. The young lads came in and did a good job. We defended unbelievably well.
"I don't know if we had more mentality than the other team but we wanted it more. This is why we throw everything in. This was, for me, absolutely amazing, yes.
ralph hasenhüttl
we must have the perfect day and today was the perfect day.
southampton fc manager
"We must have the perfect day and it was the perfect day. Now I can retire," Hasenhüttl added, while laughing.
"The three points are amazing, but not only the points, it feels like more. Because against this team to win is so hard. We still tried to be brave, we still tried to play football, we still tried to let them run. It was tough.
"An unbelievably intense game. The guys are finished, they are really tired now, but this is what you have to be after such a game.
"This is the way we have to go, we have no alternative. I like to go this way because they deserve a chance, they've been fighting hard. They're coming in and fighting hard, I'm proud. This helps them for the future, definitely.
"The work we've done in the summer, with the playbook, you see it now. We've benefited from our development and this is why we've used so much energy to create this stuff. You can be proud of the guys and hopefully there is more coming."
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