NATHAN Jones revealed “I think we know what shape we’d like to play” but insists player unavailability has limited his continuity so far at Saints.

The boss has already trialled over half-a-dozen different formations and has named 18 different starting players in three Premier League matches.

All three have resulted in defeat for the new manager, although Liverpool away was admittedly a tough start, with the concession of eight goals.

The latest came 2-1 at Fulham’s Craven Cottage, after which Jones claimed the Saints performance deserved a result while counterpart Marco Silva disagreed.

Asked by the Daily Echo if he knows what his best XI actually is yet, Jones responded: “I think we know what shape we'd like to play. It's just a lot to do with personnel and so on and each game is different because we have a small side.

“We don't have the biggest or most aggressive side in terms of everything. We're having to find formulas and situations where we can be strong in every department.

“We have to make sure we give ourselves a chance of winning the game and today we lost a little bit of aggression and then conceded from set-plays and that's the frustrating thing today because we should be better than that."

A minor positive for a strong travelling Saints support was the return of young midfielder Romeo Lavia, who has not featured regularly since an August injury.

The 18-year-old was introduced just ahead of added time and will hope to play a more key role in the survival push for Saints.

"There are lots of young players in the team and a lot of players with real, top-end talent and we have to make sure that we look after those,” Jones said.

“We could have pushed Romeo but if he breaks down again. You know he's only made seven appearances this year and he wanted to play in our games more.” 

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