Dave Jones has called on his Cardiff players to "embrace the pressure" ahead of the promotion clash with Saints.
The former Saints boss is hoping to plot a second win over his old club this season in a game vital to both sides.
Jones still believes his side could claim one of the two automatic promotion spots and, rather than fearing the pressure, is instead telling his players to enjoy it.
He said: "We have worked hard all season, including our pre-season, to be in the mix come this stage.
"We are not ruling automatic promotion out as, with so many points to play for, anything is possible.
"I wouldn't be here or doing my job correctly if I didn't believe or get the players to believe it is possible to go up automatically.
"We have 27 points to play for and, starting with our trip to Southampton, we will be doing everything in our power to get as many of those points as possible.
"We need to embrace the pressure and strive to do the best we can to achieve our aim, which is promotion".
Cardiff come into the game on the back of a 1-0 win over Norwich on Saturday and are three points ahead of Saints.
"I keep saying it, but there are no easy games in this division from the first game to the last," said Jones, who has ended a loser on his three previous St Mary's visits with Wolves (twice) and Cardiff.
Full story: See today's Daily Echo.
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