SAINTS boss Ralph Hasenhuttl is hopeful that Nathan Redmond’s injury won’t rule him out of action.

The winger had to be aided off the pitch by Saints’ medical staff after dropping to the floor clutching his ankle.

Redmond had not long before his injury set Michael Obafemi up for the winner after an excellent run into the box.

Hasenhuttl said: “The first thing is that I hope the injury of Nathan is not that bad.

“It was a shocking moment when he was laying on the ground, but the good thing is that the ankle is not swollen.

“The bad thing is that he is in big pain, so we must have a look.”

Hasenhuttl also added that he is yet to be fully briefed by his medical staff, so doesn’t yet know the extent of Redmond’s ankle injury.

“We don’t know yet,” continued the Saints boss.

“It’s not easy to say. The only thing I can say is that it’s not that swollen.

“We must have a look and we must wait for the diagnosis.”

Obafemi also had to leave the pitch early after going down unchallenged in the middle of the pitch.

He received medical attention on the field, with the decision being made to take him off.

However, Hasenhuttl confirmed that it looked to be a case of cramp, rather than anything serious.

Saints’ boss explained: “I don’t know if he’s injured or had just a little bit of cramp in the hamstrings.

“He was not injured. He scored an important goal for us.

“It was his first time in the team from the beginning and we gave him the chance to show up.

“He hasn’t played so far in this season, but he is a young guy who must develop his game.”

Hasenhuttl opted to play a number of senior players to ensure their pathway into the third round of the Carabao Cup.

The Austrian made just five changes from last weekend’s win against Brighton, with Alex McCarthy, Cedric, Moussa Djenepo, Sofiane Boufal and Michael Obafemi all coming into the side.

And after a poor showing in the first half, the Saints manager revealed he had to raise his voice in the dressing room during the interval.

The first half wasn’t aggressive enough from our side and I was a little bit loud at half time.

“The second half was much better, and we had more ball possession in the opponent’s half and several chances.

“It could have been easily three, four or five-zero, maybe one for them because we were a little bit lucky in the first half.

“The second half was a really good performance and the players showed against the ball what I want them to be. Especially, the players who had a new chance to play, they convinced me.”