Mauricio Pochettino is hoping this will be the weekend when Saints ensure Premier League football for another season.
Saints know victory over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Sunday will guarantee them top-flight survival and a share of the riches on offer next year as the new TV deal kicks in.
It is fairly likely that Saints would stay up without collecting another point, but a win over the Black Cats would remove any doubt at all.
Sunderland have their own reasons to strive for a win though as they are just one point below Saints in the table.
“It is clear that we welcome any losses of rival teams that are in similar positions to ours,” said Pochettino.
“We’re always keeping an eye on those sort of games.
“We know that we have two games left, we need to do our job and get the maximum number of points from these last two games.
“We are very aware that the game on Sunday is going to be quite intense and that both teams are going to be playing for more than just the three points.
“We know that the atmosphere is going to be very much charged. We’re going to face a side that has been physical ever since the arrival of Paolo di Canio so we are prepared to compete on Sunday.”
The biggest problem for Saints in recent weeks has been scoring goals.
Much of their success this season has been based on their ability to find the back of the net.
Their 47-goal haul is better than any other team in the bottom half, but they have not managed to score in their previous three matches.
“We have had trouble basically finding the back of the net,” added the manager.
“We need to be confident that in the next game we will be able to score because goals are what actually get you results so we need to keep the focus.”
