NATHAN Redmond has spent the international break working on improving Saints’ attacking fortunes.

The last time Mark Hughes’ side parted company to join their national team, there was a heavy focus on shoring things up in defence.

Except the 6-1 thrashing to Man City, the hard yards in that area have paid off.

But with Saints struggling to find the back of the net, Redmond revealed the attackers were put under the spotlight.

Redmond said: “We have done a lot of finishing drills to gain confidence in front goal, but also a lot of crossing drills.

“It’s not rocket science but creating chances and scoring goals is probably the hardest thing in football.

“There is a lot of onus on the guys up-front and the guys out wide to do that. Especially the intensity in our passing, the intensity in our pressing and our communication as well.

“But we have to do it as a team. We defend as a team and score goals as a team.

“I think we have been a victim to bad luck at some points, but at the end of the day, we are the ones who cross the white line and have to do a job.”

Saints travel to Craven Cottage on Saturday to face a Fulham team who have conceded 31 goals in their opening 12 games.

That defensive record, coupled with a lack of wins, was enough to see former boss Slavisa Jokanovic lose his job.

He was replaced by Claudio Ranieri at the beginning of the international break who immediately said things need to tighten up at the back.

Saturday’s game could prove to be an excellent opportunity for Saints to gain some confidence in front of goal.

Based on what Redmond has seen on the training ground in the build-up to the Fulham match, he believes the signs are positive.

But he also insisted that they need to transfer what they are doing at Staplewood into a match situation.

“It’s not been too bad [in training],” Redmond added.

“At the end of the day, you miss some chances and score some.

“It can come to a game and you’ll get five chances in which you might score one. In training you’d probably score all five.

“It’s difficult in front of 40,000 people every week, but that’s just the nature of the job.

“Being in the situation we are in at the moment, it’s a little bit nervy in front of goal sometimes as we are pushing for another win.”

There has been an air of frustration over the side’s lack of goals since the beginning of the season.

Saints are level with Crystal Palace, who have also only scored eight, but only Huddersfield have found the back of the net on fewer occasions.

Hughes’ side are being kept out of the relegation zone on goal difference, but Redmond has reassured the St Mary’s faithful that Saints are working tirelessly behind the scenes to improve that position.

Redmond added: “When the fans are watching the game, they see the players on a Saturday.

“They don’t see the hard work that is going on here, the boys in the gym, the boys in the rehab room, the training hours people put in outside and the extra hours people are putting in.

“Nobody sees what’s behind the scenes, they see 90 minutes on a Saturday.

“It’s one of the best jobs in the world, but also one of the most difficult because the margin between being a Premier League, Championship, League One and League Two player is getting finer each year.”