MAYA Yoshida has urged heartbroken Saints to dry their eyes and bounce back like "warriors" at Watford on Saturday.

Claude Puel's men are understandably still reeling from the "painful" League Cup final defeat to Manchester United, but Yoshida admits there is no time to wallow in the dramatic 3-2 loss at Wembley.

"We have no time to cry anymore, so just head up and move on to get back on track," the Japanese defender said.

"We tried to accomplish something in the final, there was a lot of heartbreak, but still we have massive confidence about ourselves.

"Of course it’s painful but we have to move on because we have another important competition in the Premier League.

"It’s not easy, but we have to [go on]," he added.

"We lost but we shouldn’t move on as a loser, we have to be still like warriors and show our character."

Despite the defeat, 13th-placed Saints were by far the better team at Wembley, where they again played impressively in the reinstated 4-2-3-1 formation.

They have sought solace in that performance as they prepare to take on Walter Mazzarri's team, who are just a point ahead of Saints but have played a game more in the top-flight.

Yoshida knows that Puel's men must prove they have rebounded from the cup disappointment as they aim to make it back-to-back Premier League wins for the first time since September after beating Sunderland 4-0 last time out.

"It is most important to show our reaction to the fans, to ourselves, to other people," he said.

"I still have massive confidence in ourselves and now we have to be ready for the Watford game and if we play like the final we should be okay."

In the long run, the 28-year-old speculates that the Wembley defeat may be beneficial.

"That experience will be very important for us because we have to use it now," he said.

"We have to grow up with this experience.

"Tactically we played much better than Manchester United but individually the players they have can change the game in one moment with one chance.

"We are not Manchester United, so we have to be more creative and have to play as one."

Yoshida has been partnering Jack Stephens at centre-back during injured captain Virgil van Dijk's absence.

But with newbie Martin Caceres training well, Puel could change his central defensive duo soon.

The former Juventus and Barcelona defender, who was brought in as a free agent last month to bolster the ranks, hasn't played competitively in more than a year but surprised Puel with his fitness levels and quality during the warm weather training camp in Spain last week.

However, Yoshida makes a point against bringing Caceres in, believing that his understanding with Stephens, 23, is improving all the time.

"Every player wants to play every game," he said. "I have played with Jack for a few games now and there’s a much better understanding and trust."