Adam Armstrong, a forward, wants the Saints to “put things right” against Ipswich, the leaders of the Championship league, on Monday.
Only a few days after their 1-1 draw with Middlesbrough on Friday, Southampton will be visiting Portman Road and hoping to capitalize on Leicester and Leeds’ point losses.
Armstrong claimed that the team was damaged by Ipswich’s close 1-0 victory over the other team at St Mary’s earlier in the season.
With two games remaining, Russell Martin’s team might narrow the deficit with the Tractor Boys to seven points with a victory.
“We know where they are in the table and how well they have done this year,” Armstrong told the Daily Echo. “They are top of the table, having come up from League One last season, that’s an incredible achievement. “We have got to go there and be ourselves and put things right.
That defeat to them earlier this season hurt, they all did. “When you lose four on the bounce they all hurt the same amount as each other. We have to make sure we put the work in ahead of going there to put on a shift.”
Southampton’s eight games in April begin with the trip to Ipswich. During this stretch, having a deep squad and maintaining focus will be essential.
The 90th minute of Friday’s match saw Boro equalize, which infuriated fans, players, and coaches equally.
If the South Coast side is to edge out of contention for the final automatic promotion slot, they simply cannot afford any more moments like that.
“If we are not putting them away then we need to be solid at the back,” Armstrong concluded. “This is a league where you get punished if you switch off for a minute. It’s the same in the Premier League. “It’s something that we really need to make sure we are better at.
We have the depth. Everyone is taking off each other. We need to keep that up because there are a lot of games in such a tight space of time.”