Nigel Adkins enjoying the challenge of keeping Southampton in Premier League

Nigel Adkins: Determined to do all he can to keep Southampton in the Premier League

Southampton manager Nigel Adkins is enjoying the challenge of trying to keep the Saints in the Premier League.

The top-flight new boys have endured an unfortunate start to life in the Premier League and find themselves second bottom with just four points from their nine games.

But talking ahead of Monday's trip to face West Brom, Adkins said: "I'm loving the challenge, you only know once you're in a situation how you are going to react and face it.

"After the West Ham defeat there was a half-hour period which I didn't like but I'm loving the challenge that we are faced with, it is what you want to be in football for.

"We are ambitious, we want to be winners and we are used to being winners - we are now faced with a different challenge but it is one that we embrace, we look forward to it.

"Nobody said it was going to be easy, this is what we are in football for, we are pushing ourselves to the limit.

"We can go one of two ways - we can either hide behind situations and crumble or we can face everything up, stick our chests out and we can be positive in what we do."

Adkins feels he has been a marked man even before the Premier League season got under way but does not feel under any more pressure now than when he was guiding the Saints to back-to-back promotions.

He said: "Before we even kicked a football I think I was the favourite to be sacked.

"So every week there is a question about that and it doesn't faze me one iota, I'm very, very ambitious and we are very ambitious here at Southampton - what will be in football will be.

"(The pressure) is exactly the same as when I joined. I put my comments out straightaway that I wanted to win the league and we got ourselves promoted, then we got ourselves promoted from the Championship."