Southampton boss Mark Hughes has praised the connection between his players and the supporters for the games in their run-up to the end of the season.
Hughes took over in March with the club sitting in the relegation zone.
He oversaw 10 matches and guiding them to safety, but described their journey as a ‘rollercoaster.’
It’s been a rollercoaster. We’ve been knocked down but we’ve got ourselves back up again and that’s credit to the guys. Maybe people are trying to accentuate my role in this a little bit more than they should do, the credit should go to the players and the fans as well.
Hughes also admitted he was aware of a ‘difficult relationship’ between players and fans but says he saw no signs of it.
People were saying to me it was a difficult relationship between the players and the crowd and maybe it was damaged, but I saw no evidence of it. They knew we needed help and that’s how a football club should be.
You need that. You can’t take it for granted – you need to work, to show desire and application. They need to see it week in, week out. If you do that and you have that connection with the crowd and your fans, clearly it’s a lot easier.
The Saints momentarily secured their Premier League status following their 1-0 win at Swansea last Tuesday.
Although they were defeated by champions Manchester City in their final game, it was a day to celebrate for Saints fans as their safety confirmed due to Swansea losing at home to Stoke.
