MARK Hughes will be aiming to benefit from a larger contingent of Saints’ players staying at home this international break, after a drop-off in national team call-ups.

Just five first-team regulars have gone on duty to their respective national teams, leaving a significant chunk behind at Staplewood during this defining period.

That will give new Saints boss Hughes extra working time on the training ground as he prepares his side for their huge eight-game Premier League relegation run-in, starting at West Ham a week Saturday.

The Welshman, who took over from the sacked Mauricio Pellegrino a week ago, has had three training days at the helm so far but now has a concentrated period with no games which will be used to shape and galvanise his side ahead of a crucial period.

Just four of the starting team from the 2-0 FA Cup quarter-final win at Wigan – Dusan Tadic, Cedric Soares, Mario Lemina and Sofiane Boufal – have got call ups this time.

Shane Long, Josh Sims and Jan Bednarek have too, meaning seven players involved in the first-team in total will be heading away for the next week or so.

It’s inevitably in part down to the team’s poor form that many have been overlooked to play for their countries, but it could, in a strange twist of fate, help Hughes as he looks to take a defibrillator to Saints’ ailing campaign.

With internationals Wesley Hoedt, Maya Yoshida, Manolo Gabbiadini, Nathan Redmond, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and James Ward-Prowse all going unselected by their countries this time, Hughes has an unusually large group to work with.

Ryan Bertrand also pulled out of England duty because of a back problem, while Steven Davis, who is continuing to recover from a hamstring issue, will not be involved for Northern Ireland, despite being called up.

The 54-year-old boss managed to shake some of the issues hindering his team at Wigan, blowing off the slow-paced tactics of Pellegrino in a much-improved second-half display at the DW Stadium.

Hughes admitted after the victory at the League One side that it was a ‘statement of intent’ but that there was plenty of work still to do to turn things around.

The experienced boss has made no secret that he is at St Mary’s to make an impact and won’t be scared to tread on some toes to help steer Saints to Premier League survival.

The next seven days at Staplewood could prove vital in the evolution of this team under Hughes and ultimately whether Saints survive.

It should therefore be a positive to have many players available to him, giving Hughes the chance to mould the team in his image.