CLAUDE Puel believes Saints “cannot have any other ambition” but to stop the rot in the Premier League – even with a dream Wembley final up for grabs in the League Cup.

With Saints losing four straight top flight games, Puel revealed that he can ill afford to put importance on anything other than turning around their ailing fortunes in the Premier League.

That means the St Mary’s chief intends to put all his effort into the visit of Leicester City today, partly disregarding Saints’ trip to Liverpool in the League Cup semi-final second leg on Wednesday night, in which they take a 1-0 aggregate lead.

“I think the most important game is Leicester,” he said. “It is important to stop this situation, the losses in the Premier League.

“We need a good result and points now to be sufficient. After, the cup is a good thing. It is an exciting game and we will have time to consider this game.

“The most important game is Leicester. After that to play Liverpool after this game in the semi-final leg is another thing.”

He added: “It is not important for me at the moment to see with a good focus about this game and our possibility in this moment.

“We cannot see other things in the future without taking points and good results.

“Now it is important to come back and find a good solution to win our games and see in the future.

“We cannot have any other ambition at the moment other than to win just this game.”

With Saints starting the weekend in 13th place in the Premier League, with struggling champions Leicester just three points behind, Puel knows that climbing the top-flight is essential before they are sucked into a battle in the lower reaches of the table.

“It is very important for us,” he said. “It is important to find the solution and keep the attitude up from the last game because it was very interesting without the clinical and now it is important to find this efficiency and to take points with our fans and all the support of the fans.

“It is important now to find the solution and be a game between two teams in difficulties. It is an important game and I think the maturity and experience of the game will be important without thinking of other games in other competitions.”

Saints are eyeing a return to the top half of the Premier League, after sliding glumly into the lower part of the table after their 1-0 defeat at Burnley last time out.

“For the moment it is the same situation as Leicester, it is to go up and find a solution because we cannot have other ambitions at the moment to see the top part of the table. For the moment we are in the second part and we want to go up into the first part.

“It's important to stay focused about this game, two teams in difficulty in the Premier League, in the same situation,” he continued. “Leicester, then us, we want a good result, points, and it's important to have a good concentration about this. It will be a difficult game against a strong team, back on the pitch.

“This is a physical game also, it's important to have a good analysis, a good concentration, and a good attitude, like the three last games, like Burnley, or Liverpool. It was interesting. the attitude, and it's important to see this again in the next game against Leicester.”