SAINTS boss Ralph Hasenhuttl is confident that West Ham chief Manuel Pellegrini can handle the pressure he is under.

There have been various reports suggesting the Chilean could lose his job if Saints beat the Hammers at the weekend.

Pellegrini, who has won the Premier League with Manchester City, only signed a three-year deal at the London Stadium last summer.

Hasenhuttl said: “I must say that I see him as a fantastic manager: he has played twice and won twice against me.

“I think he has a lot of experience and we all have situations, moments and periods where things don’t go the way you want them to go with problems and injuries.

“But you always have to handle these issues.

“I don’t have to tell him what to do because he is a very experienced guy. I think all the managers in the Premier League do a fantastic job.

“They invest a lot of time and energy to make the team better and to win games.”

Although Pellegrini has the full support of Hasenhuttl, the Saints boss won’t allow the Hammers’ current situation affect the way he approaches Saturday night’s match.

West Ham are just one point ahead of the St Mary’s side going into the encounter and could fall into the relegation zone if they lose.

Hasenhuttl added: “You can come in a run that is not very positive but it’s better for us to concentrate on our game and the issues we have.”