Southampton manager Ronald Koeman has admitted that every game in the Premier League is tough and the upcoming matches for his team will not make Champions League qualification easy for the Saints.
Koeman arrived at Southampton last summer following the departure of Mauricio Pochettino, who headed to take charge of Tottenham Hotspur. The Saints were expected to suffer this season after of several first team regulars left in the close season.
But the Dutchman has guided the team admirably and they have spent large parts of the season among the Premier League’s top four before slipping to fifth after losing to Liverpool last weekend. Their run has raised hopes of a possible Champions League spot next season.
Southampton have some difficult games to encounter including against title contenders Chelsea and Manchester City as well as fellow Champions League hopefuls Tottenham Hotspur.
Speaking at a pre-match press conference ahead of their Saturday fixture against West Bromwich Albion, on being asked about the difficult road ahead of his team, Koeman replied that with every team fighting for one objective or another he expects some tough games.
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“I think every game is difficult, a lot of the teams are fighting against relegation or [for the] Europa League or the Champions League and there are no easy games.
"Every team will fight for one objective or the other.”
He admitted that there are no easy games in the Premier League with every team capable of beating any other team.
“My experience in my first season in Premier League is that every game is difficult.
“You can lose to any team, you have to prepare for each and game take each match as it comes."
He added that the pressure of Champions League qualification is not too difficult to bear for the Saints faithful and insisted that the prospect of European football is no pipe dream for his team.
“I don’t think the pressure of Champions League football is too much for our fans because everyone can dream about success and about the Champions League.”
However, he acknowledged that it was always going to be difficult for the St Mary’s residents to maintain their top four standing and the bigger teams were always likely to take the top spots.
“We know about our quality and we know it is a long season so it was always going to be difficult to keep our top four position.
“We know that and of course the big ones [teams] normally have the best players and they are likely to finish ahead of us.”
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