Sandro positive ahead of Saints test

Sandro feels our fighting finish in Lisbon will kick-start the rest of the season.

Nacer Chadli’s quickfire double pulled us back from 4-1 down to 4-3 on aggregate against Benfica with 10 minutes left of our Europa League Round of 16 tie at the Estadio da Luz.

We created chances after that and were still knocking on the door for the one goal we needed in added time when Benfica broke away, won a penalty and scored to end the overall contest.

“It was so close,” said Sandro, who received praise all round for his performance as stand-in centre-half.

“We played so well in the second half. We pushed to the end, scored two goals and had more chances.

“Now we feel better. We go home with more confidence ahead of the next game. We scored goals, we played well and I think now we’ll score more goals and get more wins between now and the end of the season.

“We showed a lot in this game and now we have to do it again and again.”

Southampton are next up at the Lane in the Premier League on Sunday (1.30pm).

"Every game is tough and we have to play the same as we did against Benfica," he added.