Midfielder Stuart Armstrong was keen to focus on certain aspects of Southampton's game that they can be proud of after their defeat to Aston Villa.
Despite a promising start from Southampton, it was a frustrating evening in SO14 as the odds simply weren't in their favour.
Saints had a penalty denied early on, despite what appeared to be a clear handball and VAR came back to haunt them again as the final whistle approached, as Danny Ings had the ball in the back of the net but his goal was ruled offside by the finest of margins.
“It's tough. The first half we were good, created a few chances.” Armstrong reflected.
"When they scored it was a little bit deflating, we controlled the first half so second half we’re trying to get back into the game, create chances – which we did. Unfortunately, it didn't fall for us.
"We can be pleased with certain aspects of our game."
Armstrong had his say on that contentious VAR decision.
"At the time I thought it was a penalty, 100%. I haven’t seen it back but I’ve heard it was quite clear so I'm not sure on the decision thought process," he said
Looking ahead to Tuesday’s Premier League fixture at Old Trafford, Armstrong knows how important is for Saints to start picking up results.
He said: “Another tough game. They’re in a good bit of form and we need to start picking up results. It’ll be an interesting game, another tough game as it’s a short turn around again – quick recovery.
"I think we have that feeling [that we can compete] against every single team we play. We always feel we have a chance, obviously we need to put in the performance to get that opportunity.
"We go there with belief, we know that we’ve done it before and can do it again.”