Ralph Hasenhuttl has identified lack of confidence as a major problem among his players after the struggling Saints were swept aside by Chelsea in the Premier League.
The Blues defeated the Saints 4-1 after Tammy Abraham, Mason Mount, N’Golo Kante and Michy Batshuayi scored as Chelsea ran riot at St. Mary’s Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The home defeat to Chelsea was a hugely disappointing afternoon for the home team as Saints were barely able to compete with Frank Lampard’s side.
There were worrying signs for Hasenhuttl as the individual errors which have dogged Saints in recent times returned, while the manager also admitted his team were not competitive enough across the pitch.
After the match, Hasenhuttl, speaking to Match of the Day, said: “We started well but to be honest we are far away from our best, and against the best opponents you only have the chance to take something if you play your best.
“We were too slow in our minds, too slow on the ball. They showed us every weakness we had and we have a lot of them at the moment.
“When they build up from behind and score we must say ‘OK’, but to give the chances we did against such an opponent, you cannot handle it. That was the reason we were 3-1 down in the first half. Second half was a little better but not really, we never had the chance to come back.
“We know it is a tough situation, but we must work really hard and that’s what we will do.”
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