Southampton may have been battling at the wrong end of the Premier League in recent seasons - but Matt Le Tissier says is time to put silverware in the trophy cabinet.

Not since the days of Mick Channon, Peter Osgood and Bobby Stokes have the Saints won a trophy when they beat Manchester United to lift the FA Cup in 1976.

They were runners-up to the same side two years ago in the Carabao Cup and Le Tissier believes Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side can go one step further this season.

If they are then they will have to overcome current holders Manchester City in the next round.

After Sunday’s 4-1 defeat by Chelsea, Southampton are hovering just above the drop zone but Le Tissier says they should focus on domestic silverware.

“I think we’re realistic enough to know that we’re not going to win the Premier League," said Le Tissier.

“But we got to the final of the League Cup a couple of seasons ago and just lost out narrowly to Manchester United.

“So there’s no reason why we can’t win a trophy this season.

“There’s a lot of talent in the squad so hopefully we can get the best out of all of them – Nathan Redmond last season was pretty important for us.

“He gives us that pace, that edge and that directness to our play that causes people problems.

“Moussa Djenepo has also been a big plus – he got two fantastic goals away from home (against Brighton and Sheffield United) which have really turned the games in our favour and got us six points.”

Le Tissier was speaking at the launch of private charter flight Le Tiss Air, an initiative devised by eToro, partner of Southampton FC and five other Premier League clubs. This is to reward Saints fans who have to travel, on average, 12% more miles than other Premier League fans across the season. 

Despite being stuck in Sky’s Soccer Saturday studio, Le Tissier remains an avid Southampton fan, steadfastly backing Hasenhuttl after his heroics in keeping Southampton up last season despite the perilous situation he inherited.

He is also an advocate of the club’s laudable promotion of youth, that has seen the likes of Gareth Bale, Luke Shaw and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all emerge from St Mary’s over recent years.

And with the cup clash with City on the horizon, he drew a compelling comparison between the two clubs’ approaches.

“I think we’ve been pretty lucky with the talent that’s come through,” he added.

“Obviously there’s lots of good coaches down there, but I think the biggest thing is that the players get given the chance to play in the first-team at Southampton.

“These boys could be at much bigger football clubs where perhaps they weren’t getting the chance – you look at Phil Foden at Manchester City who’s not really getting much of a look in.

“I think if he was at Southampton he’d have been playing the in first-team for two or three seasons, so that’s the difference.”

eToro, the global multi-asset investment platform, is rewarding loyal football fans ahead of an in-depth report due to be released later this month in association with the KPMG Football Benchmark, which looks at the costs associated with being a dedicated match-going football fan. To find out more please head to www.eToro.com