Leam Richardson's challenge to his Rotherham United squad as survival hopes slip away

The Millers, who have won only once since October, were beaten 2-0 at home by a Southampton side that extended their unbeaten run to 23 matches to move up two places into the top two.

Relegation for the bottom-placed club is looking ever more likely but Richardson said: "We either feel sorry for ourselves and don’t do anything about it or we meet the challenges.

“We should never be okay with losing 2-0 to Southampton because we want a competitive environment.

“You either meet the challenge head on or you back off. I would rather go for it. If you’re going to lose, lose being the best version of yourself.”

A difficult task against the Saints was made even harder when Rotherham conceded a goal after only four minutes.

They were 2-0 down by the break and, although they improved considerably following the interval, never looked like they could force themselves back into the contest.

“The disappointing thing is the way we started the game,” the head coach said. “The second half was more like us, without us creating a mass of chances.

“Southampton were exactly what we expected. They’re a team full of quality and are going very well. It was a tough afternoon for the boys.”

Visiting boss Russell Martin singled out Viktor Johansson for praise after the Millers goalkeeper had pulled off several stops to keep down the score.

He said: “I really enjoyed our performance and the control we had. Their goalie made some really good saves and we should have scored a couple more goals. We limited them to very little.

“The players really looked after each other. They fought so hard and ran so hard out of possession. I am really proud of them.

“We had a joke at breakfast about going 20-odd unbeaten and still being fourth. That’s the level of the competition. The Championship is outstanding and it’s great to be involved in it.”