SAINTS defender Cedric Soares is hoping the attention he has paid on the training ground will pay off tonight.

Cedric’s Portugal play Poland in their final UEFA Nations League match, where he will come up against fellow Saint, Jan Bednarek.

The Portuguese full-back says this doesn’t concern him though, and that it could be advantageous due to knowing each other’s weaknesses.

Cedric said: “We do this all the time.

“A lot of friends of mine play for different national teams, we all play against each other.

“In one way, you know them better, so you know how to exploit them if you are concentrating on the training ground.

“But you also know what to be careful with.

“Once you are inside the pitch and fighting for your nation you just focus on your job and try to give your best for your country.

“I try not to worry about who is on the other side - even if it is Jan [Bednarek].

“I wish him all the best, but of course I want to win.”

Cedric and Bednarek have been teammates for just over a year but haven’t played regularly on the pitch together.

The Polish international has struggled for game time since his arrival in 2017, making only six appearances.

Cedric, on the other hand, is in his fourth season at St Mary’s and is only three matches short of turning out for Mark Hughes’ side 100 times.

Despite always starting for Saints, Cedric isn’t a guaranteed starter for his national side and was left on the bench during their goalless draw with Italy on Saturday night.

Portugal go into the tonight’s game in Guimarães without any pressure knowing that they already have their spot in the UEFA Nations League semi-finals guaranteed.

Winless Poland will be relegated from the group into a lower tier – even if they win.

With the latter stages of the tournament taking place on home soil, Cedric is determined to do all he can to ensure the current European Champions end on a high.

Cedric admitted that he would be happy to share details about Bednarek to his Portuguese teammates, but thinks they are good enough to go without it.

He added: “It’s [discussing weaknesses] part of football, but special attackers don’t like to be told what to do.

"Everyone does their own analysis of their opponents.

"If I’m playing against a winger, who a teammate of mine trains with every day, then I will ask him, ‘what is his favourite thing to do on the pitch?’, to help me in the game.”