TOTTENHAM manager Jose Mourinho believes Saints would have preferred an easier tie in the FA Cup fourth round.

Spurs' 2-1 win against Middlesbrough on Tuesday night sets up another clash between the two sides who met on New Year's Day.

Ralph Hasenhuttl's side ran out 1-0 winners at the start of 2020 and will be hoping for another victory to seal their passage into the fifth round.

But after Giovani Lo Celso and Erik Lamela fired Spurs past Middlesbrough, Mourinho was quick to point out it won't be an easy game for both teams.

He said: “They [Saints] are on fire. 

“They are winning matches home and away. Great results. They were in the dark zone and now they are shining. So we know that it’s going to be a difficult tie.

“The luck is not with us in the draws – two away, difficult matches at Middlesbrough and now Southampton.

"But it is what it is. I think Southampton also they feel that they could have a much easier tie.”