Jose Fonte has urged the Saints players to keep strong and to trust themselves, after they fell to defeat at West Brom.

Ronald Koeman’s side saw their struggles continue at the Hawthorns, with just one win in their last five meaning their European hopes have taken a significant hit.

With no goals in their last three games either, this is as difficult a period as Saints have faced all season, but Fonte has urged them to retain faith.

Asked about the frustration of not scoring again, Fonte told the club: “That’s something that has been happening for a while now, but we need to keep strong and believe in each other.

“We have to trust each other and keep working hard on the training ground so that things turn around.

“Without putting too much pressure on the guys up front, we need to – as a team – pull through this.”

Fonte added: “The last couple of games were ones we really wanted to win, obviously, so this is disappointing.

“As a club, we need to stick together, because we’ve done fantastically until now and there are still 11 games to go.

“We all need to keep fighting. We need to look at the bigger picture. We’re still in a good position, and there’s a lot to play for.”

With Saido Berahino scoring what proved to be the decisive goal in the second minute, Saints’ task was made all the harder.

“For their style of play, that was the best thing that could have happened for them,” said Fonte.

“They like to sit deep and wait for the team to come up and counter-attack them, so for them it was perfect and that made it really hard for us. But, still, I think we needed to do better.”

The focus now immediately turns to Tuesday’s home game against Crystal Palace, with Fonte adding: “We know where we want to be as a club, as a team and as a group of players, so Tuesday’s game is massive.

“It would have been a long week if the game was on Saturday, so we’re all glad it’s on Tuesday and we can put it right.”