Southampton midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg insists his side will not accept a repeat of the 9-0 defeat to Leicester, as they prepare to face Manchester City.
Southampton travel North for two fixtures against City in a week, the first coming in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday.
Ralph Hasenhuttl's side shipped a record-breaking nine goals to Leicester in their last game, and Hojberg says the squad have no intentions of allowing a similar scoreline again.
Hojbjerg and his teammates have donated a day's wages to the club's charitable foundation after the humiliating defeat, and the Danish international has come out with a defiant message ahead of the first clash with City.
“If there is one saying it’s, ‘Tough periods make tough people’," he said, outlining Southampton's ambitions to show an improvement against City.
"I can try and say something, but it won’t change anything. I don’t want to speak, I want to show by action. I don’t care who is coming up. Our actions have to speak.
“We never want to be in this position again or anywhere near it. We have to get back up and make sure this never happens again.
“We can put quotes out, apologise and say something, but the only thing that’s the real deal now is actions.
“Actions that are nowhere near what they were against Leicester. We can never show our faces like this again.”
Manager Hasenhuttl issued a similar message, saying: “After this, no more talking from us, no more messages – the time for that is over.
“Our only focus is working towards Manchester City. This is where we must direct our entire energy, and this is what we owe to our fans.”
