Russell Martin challenged Ryan Fraser to kick on after the Scotland international’s late goal maintained Southampton’s promising run with a 2-1 win at Hull.
The on-loan Newcastle winger opened his Saints account in the fifth minute of stoppage time to settle a fascinating game of end-to-end football.
Martin said: “People ask me, ‘what’s he like as a person?’ – he’s a brilliant lad.
“He’s intelligent, he lives for football and he enjoys being here.
“We’ve been trying to get him fit by playing games, which is not ideal, but he does everything properly and that finish was top drawer.
“I’m really pleased for him. He has great technical ability and he’s a top guy, which I already knew before he joined the club.”
Despite their slow start to the season, Southampton are now unbeaten in four games and are fifth in the Sky Bet Championship.
A frenetic game felt destined to end in a draw after Will Smallbone’s opening goal in the 20th minute was cancelled out by Liam Delap just five minutes later.
Hull were the better side in the first half and also served notice of their intent with an early flurry of chances after the interval.
But Martin’s judicious use of the bench eventually yielded handsome dividends.
Following a sustained spell of late pressure, Fraser, who replaced Stuart Armstrong after 84 minutes, was well positioned to sweep home Flynn Downes’ precise cross from the right.
Martin said: “Away from home against a team who are playing well – they’re in a good place, this club – I’m delighted.
“We didn’t get a few details quite right (in the first half) but we caused them plenty of problems.
“It was a really good game – two teams going at it – and we tweaked a few things (after the break).
“But that wouldn’t have mattered if the mentality of the players wasn’t right, which it was.
“I thought we were outstanding in the second half. Hull grew tired and it was just relentless.
“When you’re attacking that much there’s going to be gaps and our players dealt with that brilliantly.
“I thought we were worthy winners. We were maybe too safe in the first half, but in the second half we were brilliant.
“This team is growing together, which is great to see.”
Hull side have won just once in seven games, but head coach Liam Rosenior is convinced his team are on the right path.
He said: “The manner of conceding a goal in the last minute is probably the most horrible way to lose a game.
“We need to eradicate that. For all our great play, you have to keep the back door shot.
“It became a game of who finishes their chances? We are going to be more open this season but hopefully through the season, the subs will give us the goals we will need.
“The exciting thing is that this group has got a lot of improvement. I’m very happy with the positive signs, but we have to stop throwing away points.”
Rosenior added: “We have to learn on the job, get more experience and make sure we don’t make the same mistake twice.
“It hurts at the moment, but I’m delighted we’ve got a game on Wednesday to get this out of our system.
“Some of our football has been excellent, but it needs to be excellent with points.
“I feel terrible about this result, but maybe we need to feel that pain.
“I love this group – if you see in the dressing room they are devastated – but the second goal was unacceptable from my point of view and we need to put that right.
“We are two points out of the play-offs – it’s nothing. I was delighted with the energy, but we have to start taking advantage of the moments in games.”
Sassuolo 1-0 Inter: Serie A champions suffer surprise defeat
Inter suffered only their second defeat in Serie A this season as a first-half goal by Armand Lauriente gave relegation-threatened Sassuolo a crucial 1-0 victory.
Sassuolo have a unique hold over Simone Inzaghi's side this season, as the only team to beat Inter in the league, having secured a 2-1 victory in the reverse fixture in September.
The result was a big boost in Sassuolo's battle against relegation, as they sit second from bottom on 29 points, with only three points between them and Cagliari in 14th place.
Lauriente got the only goal of the match after 20 minutes when Josh Doig managed to wrestle the ball back from Denzel Dumfries near the corner flag and pulled it back, with Sassuolo's matchwinner on hand to slot into the net from close range.
Data Debrief: Long time coming
This was the first time Inter have lost a league match against a team in the bottom two of the standings since way back in November 2014. On that occasion, they went down 2-0 to Parma.
Lauriente, meanwhile, has scored four Serie A goals since the beginning of April, a joint-record in the period in the top-flight (level with Hakan Calhanoglu).
Xavi insists there is 'no debate' over his Barcelona future
Xavi insisted there is "no debate" over his future at Barcelona after the Blaugrana's title hopes were dashed by Girona.
Barca lost 4-2 to Girona on Saturday, ensuring Real Madrid were crowned LaLiga champions.
Xavi, having initially elected to leave the club at the end of the season, last month performed a U-turn on that decision, confirming he would stay on until at least the end of the 2024-25 campaign.
Yet that did not stop the Barca coach facing questions over his role in Saturday's post-match news conference.
"There is no debate over my future," Xavi told reporters, before expanding on his feelings after the defeat.
"I am sad, disappointed. We have experienced both sides of the coin. Ineffectiveness have killed us once and again.
"I'm the first to be angry, to be p***** off with this situation, I understand the fans. Before being a coach, I was a fan. I understand our people's frustration."
Barca are now in third place and, with four matches remaining, must now rely on Girona slipping up if they are to have any chance of contesting the Supercopa de Espana next season, with a trophyless campaign guaranteed this time around.
Girona, on the other hand, sealed Champions League qualification for the first time in their history.
Portu came off the bench to score twice in Saturday's win, and he gave an emotional interview in the wake of the victory.
"It's incredible to look at your shirt and experience this. There is nothing more beautiful than living this," Portu told DAZN with tears rolling down his face.
"I had a thorn in my side with this club. A few years ago, I experienced the other side, which was relegation and I felt very responsible because I played a lot. Today I made amends with the fans and I can smile again."
Ronaldo delivers another hat-trick as Al Nassr ease past Al Wedha
Cristiano Ronaldo crafted a decisive hat-trick as Al Nassr hammered Al Wedha 6-0 in Saturday's Saudi Pro League meeting.
Portugal veteran Ronaldo found the net twice in the first 12 minutes at Al Awal Park before completing his treble after the interval.
Sadio Mane teed up Ronaldo's third finish, as well as an 18th-minute strike from Otavio, who returned the favour for the Senegal international to score on the stroke of half-time.
Mohammed Al Fatil added a late sixth as Al Nassr recorded their seventh straight league win since their March 7 loss against Al Raed, moving them back within nine points of leaders Al Hilal.
Jorge Jesus's Al Hilal swept Al Tauwoon aside in a 3-0 away triumph on Friday for their fourth straight victory across all competitions.
Talisman Aleksandar Mitrovic opened the scoring at King Abdullah Sport City Stadium before Saud Abdulhamid and Saleh Alsherhi wrapped up a win that kept Al Hilal in charge of the title race.
There was no such fortune for fifth-placed Al Ittihad as they fell to a third straight defeat in all competitions after a 3-1 loss away against Abha.
Jota levelled after Grzegorz Krychowiak's 57th-minute penalty, only for Hassan Al-Ali and Fabian Noguera to power hosts Abha to a comfortable win.
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