RALPH Hasenhuttl insists he doesn’t regret selling Matt Targett – even though he admitted to wanting a new full-back in January.

Targett was sold to today’s opponents, Aston Villa, in the summer to boost Saints’ transfer budget.

And, despite the fact he only has Ryan Bertrand as a viable left-back option, Hasenhuttl believes the club got a good deal out of it.

He said: “I still stand by that decision because we had a few other options in the summer which, finally, we couldn’t realise them.

“if you want, this was our Moussa Djenepo we got, and Moussa has brought us a few points so far.

“Matt was the back-up for Ryan.

“If I had known that we wouldn’t have got anyone in then I wouldn’t have let him go.

“But if we didn’t, then I wouldn’t have been able to bring Moussa in so it’s always a little bit difficult if you can only buy players when you sell one.

“You have to choose what is the best and what really helps us.”

Villa go into this afternoon’s game with just one Premier League win in their last eight matches.

However, they were handed a confidence boost midweek when they hit five past Liverpool’s youngsters to reach the Carabao Cup semi-final.

Speaking to the Daily Echo on Wednesday, Bertrand hinted that the newly-promoted side avoid their performances being criticised because they go under the radar.

But Hasenhuttl doesn’t think that’s the case, suggesting the magnifying glass is on every side.

“I think the focus is on every team in the Premier League,” he added.

“When you are in the relegation zone, everyone knows that it’s a fight for staying in the league.

“Last season, some clubs had more points than we had but still knew the way to the end is a long one.

“We knew from the third or fourth game day that this season was going to be a hard fight again to stay in the league.

“It doesn’t mean that we like it because we would have liked to have made a further step earlier which gives you a little bit more confidence, but no problem.

“We don’t work differently if we have more points or less points.

“We always try to give everything we have, and this is the only way we can go.”

Should Saints beat Villa this afternoon, it will mean they won’t be spending Christmas Day in the relegation zone.

The two sides are level on points but Hasenhuttl’s outfit have an inferior goal difference.

 “I think it’s a team with a big squad,” continued the Austrian.

“They played during the week with a different group and they were very successful, so you can see they have the quality in the second line.

“At home, they’ve had good results but sometimes have the same problems we have: conceding too many goals and the tight games not going on their side.

“It will be an interesting game for us and we go there with 100 per cent focus on getting the win and being brave like we always are when we play away.