RALPH Hasenhuttl admitted he was a worried man after his side’s defeat to Burnley on the opening day of the season.

Saints were blown away in the second half at Turf Moor and ended up losing the game 3-0.

And in the build-up to tomorrow’s rematch, Hasenhuttl explained how that result made him concerned for what was about to come in the following weeks.

He said: “The second half I can remember – it was not the best from my side.”

“It was tough and maybe it was a signal that we weren’t playing how we would have liked to play.

“The biggest difference was that we played with a back-five and now we have completely gone from doing that.

“Sometimes we do it but that’s very seldom.”

What alarmed Hasenhuttl most was the fact he had spent seven weeks preparing for the opening day of the Premier League campaign.

The result at Turf Moor was then followed by a difficult fixture against Liverpool.

Hasenhuttl added: “It was not really helpful for the whole development.

“You have seven weeks to prepare for the first game and then you lose the first game and that means the seven weeks were s**t.

“This is a clear message, especially when you know the next game was at home to Liverpool. It was a difficult start.

“It wasn’t nice.”

A lot has changed since August, with Hasenhuttl now content with his starting XI and the tactics he uses.

Saints have managed to climb away from the relegation zone and could set themselves up as contenders for a top-half finish.

And Hasenhuttl is looking forward to the chance for the St Mary's side to show the real them on Saturday.

He said: “It is always difficult to play against Burnley 3-0 and we know how tough it always is.

“I think we want to show that we are better now than we were at the beginning of the season.”