Southampton boss Mauricio Pellegrino has claimed that his team "deserved a little bit more" from Saturday afternoon's Premier League clash away to Stoke City.

Peter Crouch's 85th-minute header saw the Potters record a 2-1 home win after Southampton defender Maya Yoshida had cancelled out a first-half effort from Mame Biram Diouf.

Pellegrino has insisted that the Saints "were unlucky" to suffer their third league defeat of the campaign, but has 'congratulated' Stoke on the three points.

"We deserved a little bit more. We controlled the ball and put them under pressure. We were unlucky at the end and have to congratulate the opponent. We played with character, played on the floor and gave everything," Pellegrino told reporters.

"Scoring goals is the most difficult thing in modern football. I would like to score more. Sometime we have to have more accuracy but we have to keep believing. To organise the players is a long process but this game is another step."

Southampton have collected eight points from their seven Premier League matches this season, which has left them in 12th position in the table.