Southampton manager Nigel Adkins has praised his side's belief, despite a 1-0 loss at Liverpool in the Premier League on Saturday.
Daniel Agger scored the only goal of the game at Anfield as the Saints slumped to a ninth defeat of the campaign.
"That is probably as good movement as we have played against this season," Adkins told Sky Sports News.
"So from our point of view, we have come a long way, because we want to get points but we have managed to stay in the game.
"The players are improving all the time. There is a lot of belief about ourselves and we look forward to the next games."
The defeat has kept Southampton in the relegation zone.