Southampton manager Ronald Koeman has given updates regarding trio Charlie Austin, Shane Long and Jose Fonte ahead of this weekends game at home to Stoke.
'Charlie (Austin) will be out for another 10 days to two weeks. He will be fit after the international break. Shane (Long) is back and available. He can play,' said the Southampton Boss.
Jose Fonte's suspension could leave the Saints light at the back for the visit of the Potters, Koeman noted, 'We don't have a lot of replacements in that position but we have enough defenders and we will make the best choice for this Saturday. He is an important player, the captain of the team but a red card and you are suspended. It is up to the rest to replace him.'
The Dutchman also believes his side can still achieve European football next season, 'We know it is a big game against Stoke who are two points above us. Both teams have a lot of ambition to grow. It is always close between us. We don't put targets. We have an ambition to get in Europe. We didn't play well at Stoke. We were surprised by the fast counter-attacking of Stoke. We learned from that. We can beat them but we need to be at our top level,' added Koeman.
Source: transfermarketweb.com