HARRY Redknapp has described the challenge of taking over as Saints boss as the most difficult job of his life.

Redknapp admits he hadn't even thought about the challenge that would await him at Saints before he got the job because he never thought he would get it.

But now he has he confessed: "Staying up this year from this position would be a terrific achievement and that's all we're looking for."

Redknapp has never been relegated from the Premiership in his distinguished managerial career and all his thoughts are now focused on that one goal - survival.

"It's going to be a scrap," said Redknapp. "There are five or six teams in it and it's going to be a battle.

"It's carried over from last Christmas - a steady run of not winning games.

"Last Saturday had been coming. They'd got beat five by Watford.

"As I've said, I've not got a magic wand and can't suddenly wave it and make them into better players.

"We've got a lot of older players here who have been good players but are picking up injuries and a lot of young kids that are very young and not ready to play yet but we need to improve the overall standard of the team."

Redknapp, who has managed Bournemouth, West Ham and Portsmouth in his long career added: "This is as tough a job as I've had.

"Thirteen points at this stage of the season is a pretty horrendous total. It's not going to be easy."

Redknapp has targeted a points total of 38 to stay up but even admits that 35 may eventually prove enough.

However, Redknapp insists Saints can't rely on others and have to make sure they get the points on the board to secure their survival rather than hope other sides don't get the total.

"To get to 38 is going to be very difficult off of 13 points," admitted Redknapp.

"You need to get 25 points to get to 38. To get even to 35 we need 22 points from 20 games. That's OK.

"But none of the teams around the bottom have averaged a point a game so far so we've got to improve on what we've been doing to get to that total."