Oriol Romeu is determined to prove Ronald Koeman was right to spend £4m on him by taking his chance if key midfielder Victor Wanyama is forced out of Saturday’s game at Crystal Palace.

The Spanish midfielder powerhouse scored a vital equaliser for Saints as they drew 1-1 with Aston Villa, his first goal for the club.

Romeu has had to play second fiddle to Wanyama in the defensive midfield role since his summer arrival from Chelsea, but is ready to show his worth with his Kenyan teammate struggling with an ankle injury ahead of the game at Selhurst Park.

He said: “Every chance you have on the pitch and in every game you want to take it and make it important and make it count. That’s what I try to do every time. It worked a bit more because I scored (against Villa).

“The mentality will always be the same, I will always try to be in the line-up and fight for the place there and prove to the coach that I’m ready to play.

“With games, players feel better and they can be a bit higher than they are doing. That is my job is when I go out there and help the team.

“Every training session I need to prove to the manager I am ready to play.

“We will see whether I get more chances or I don’t get those chances. I am the one who has to take those chances.”

Romeu indicated that he is prepared to adapt his normal role if it means getting in the team, but the most important thing for him is to get better at what he does best.

“If I am doing something wrong I try to make it better and if I am doing some good I try to improve a bit more,” he explained.

“I want to make my skills better and make less mistakes next time so I like to watch my games to see what I’m doing wrong and right and make it better next time. It makes me better time by time.

“I like to take responsibilities to play difficult games when you are playing for something important.

“I think we like to play difficult games, tough games, ones you go into a difficult situation and you feel happier and much better. In my point of view that is what I want to do.”

Romeu’s goal against Villa was only the second of his career, and he hopes will start a new run of form in the final third.

“I hope so, I would like to,” he smiled.

“In training we are always trying to get some finishes in to shoot from outside the box, we are always trying to improve our skills. This is one of them.

“I am happy because I scored and hopefully I can get something else in the future.”

Saints go into the match against former manager Alan Pardew’s Palace side on the back of four games without a win, but Romeu feels the players are coping well with the situation.

“I like to play with pressure when we are winning, losing or drawing, it is football,” he said.

“It is the mentality of the players when some teams are losing you see a player playing well and handling those problems are good.

“I like to do that and I feel good so I don’t think that I’m not playing good or playing my best game because we aren’t winning every game.”