Southampton have the belief to keep clear of trouble – Ralph Hasenhuttl

The Saints are five points above the Premier League drop zone.

Ralph Hasenhuttl believes Southampton can pull clear of danger (Martin Rickett/PA) (PA Wire)

Ralph Hasenhuttl admits he is “far from relaxed” at the moment but says Southampton believe in themselves as they look to keep clear of relegation trouble.

The Saints ended the weekend five points above the Premier League drop zone with 16 from 16 matches. Saturday’s 3-0 loss at Arsenal was their fifth successive game without a win.

Boss Hasenhuttl told a press conference ahead of Wednesday’s trip to Crystal Palace when asked about the points tally: “I’m far away from being relaxed at the moment!

“But everybody is under pressure, everybody has their games to play and points to take.

“We know our targets, we know how tough it will be for us every season. But it’s the same for other clubs, and we are ready for the fight.

“We are not looking back or in front too much, we are looking at every game, and every game gives us a chance to take three points and this is the only way you can work here.

“When you play the games, you see there is not so much missing from taking a win or a point. This is what we have to see, and getting better in every part of our game is the goal we have every day, and this is what we are working on every day.”

On trying to stay away from the relegation places, he said: “It is for everybody a hard fight, for us, like for other teams. I think we are trusting us, we are believing in us.

“We know that every game is a tough challenge for us. For me it is always a tough race until the end.”

Southampton’s goals for total across the 16 games is 14, with their top scorers in the league this season being Armando Broja and Che Adams, who both have three.

Hasenhuttl said: “I think we have players that can score goals.

“We could definitely score more often, this is fact. This is something we have to work on, definitely.

“We showed that we can create a lot of chances, but then the finish or the last pass or the last action is sometimes not good enough, not creative enough.

“This is something you have to work on, this is a lot with quality, individual quality, and this is what we have to develop.”

The club have been assessing Broja and fellow forward Adam Armstrong – scorer of two goals this term – after both came off in the defeat at Arsenal because of injury.

Adams, who missed the game due to a knock, has been ruled out of the trip to Selhurst Park.