Mauricio Pochettino says there is no reason why Southampton cannot stay in the upper reaches of the Barclays Premier League table – providing his charges remain focused.
Goals from Dani Osvaldo and Rickie Lambert helped Saints see off Crystal Palace earlier today to move into fourth spot with six games played.
And the manager says the players' mindset will be key to maintaining their excellent start to the season.
"I think belief is key," Pochettino told Saints Player. "I believe in the players and they believe in how they are playing.
"It will be a very long season and it is going to be very hard, but the players are going to believe how we want them to play.
"We just need to keep working hard and believing that we can win every single game.
"As a player I was able to win titles and experience tells me that you need to be calm and keep your feet on the ground," he continued.
"More now than ever you have to work even harder because teams will respect us more and will know more about us.
"It's hard for these players because they are already working very hard, so to make them work even harder will be interesting. We need to remain focused."
After a goalless first half, Saints caught the newly-promoted Eagles cold at the start of the second period, with Osvaldo's and Lambert's goals coming in the 48th and 50th minutes respectively.
And the manager said he was much more pleased with how his charges fared after the break as they picked up their first home league win of the season.
"What happens in the dressing room stays in the dressing room," Pochettino responded when asked about the ferocity of his half-time team-talk. "I am a manager who has a lot of respect for the players.
"In the second half we came out with a much better set-up with how we wanted to play the game.
"The confidence and the unity, the solidity of the team is something that we want to carry on for the rest of the season, so that was very important for us."
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