SAINTS’ run to the League Cup final bears all the hallmarks of Portugal’s triumphant Euro 2016 campaign.

That’s the verdict of the man who is aiming to celebrate his second stunning cup triumph in the space of eight amazing months.

After helping his nation to shock Euros glory last summer, Portuguese ace Cedric Soares will be at right-back when Saints take on Manchester United at Wembley in the League Cup final.

The 25-year-old has reflected that “nobody expected” Portugal to win against favourites France - and nor did anyone think Saints would be in a position to win their first major title in 41 years.

Similarly to Saints in the League Cup, Portugal were by no means favourites at the tournament in France. Their odds of winning at the start of the competition were 20/1.

ABOVE: Saints celebrate winning at Anfield in the League Cup semi-final second leg.

But despite limping through the group stages with three draws, Fernando Santos’ side eventually defeated the host in the final at the Stade de France.

Cedric did not play in the groups, but was drafted in the knockout rounds, playing each of the four games as Portugal won their first-ever major international honours.

Now, the attacking full-back is aiming to help Saints win their first League Cup title in history.

“Nobody expected Portugal to do it in the Euros and here for Saints is the same,” he said. “Nobody expected Saints to come to this stage, to Wembley.

“We need to enjoy it, but we must get the win because we don’t always get these moments in life.

“We just need to do everything to achieve the win because in ten years time you want to look back and remember what a great game we had there, what a moment it was and you’d pay anything to come back and do everything again.

“This is the same feeling for Portugal. Of course, the Euros is a bigger competition, but still this is a trophy and we will fight for it.”

ABOVE: Cedric and his Portugal team-mates are paraded on an open-top bus after winning Euro 2016.

Portugal won just one game in 90 minutes during the Euros run and, despite being generally unspectacular throughout, they prevailed.

Cedric has clearly bought into the ethos that it isn’t always the team with the best players that will triumph, and that being tough and organised can produce results, even if it isn’t always pretty.

It is a “mentality” that the former Sporting Lisbon man believes Saints also possess.

“It’s a final and, like I used to say, in a final you don’t need to play, you just need to win,” he smiled.

“This is our mentality and how we are going to play this game.

“We’ve achieved this final and we deserve it as well and now we need to just enjoy the game and try for the win because now everything can happen.

“It is Manchester and we need to respect them, but they also know it’s a final and anything can happen.

“We believe we can win, but will respect our opponent and try our best to get the win.”

ABOVE: Cedric celebrates winning the Euros last summer.

So has Cedric dreamt of lifting the trophy at Wembley?

“I don’t want to think about this before the game,” he said. “But we will play this game like it’s our last game. It would be massive if we got the trophy.”

Cedric arrived at St Mary’s in June 2015, for £4.7m from Sporting.

And although he wasn’t there at the time he knows the pain Saints went through, having risen back up from near financial collapse from League One.

“Southampton have had some tough moments before when the club was in the second division,” he said. “But they’ve fought back and now they are getting better and better every year.

“This is a good sign and going to this final is already massive and very good for the club.”

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