Koeman's hard-working Saints snap losing streak

LONDON (Reuters) - The hard work and spirit that have helped many teams dig their way out of trouble proved crucial for Southampton on Saturday, according to manager Ronald Koeman whose side snapped a five-game losing streak in emphatic fashion. Southampton's fine early season form and surge up the table seemed a distant memory as they prepared to face Everton on the back of four straight Premier League defeats and an embarrassing League Cup exit at third tier Sheffield United. Yet a 3-0 victory that came courtesy of Romelu Lukaku's own goal and further strikes from Graziano Pelle and Maya Yoshida helped bring a smile back to Koeman's face. "That’s the best medicine,” the Dutchman said on the club website (www.saintsfc.co.uk). “To have a good positivity about the game is important because winning games brings players with more confidence. “We worked very hard and I think that was the key today to win the game. We showed unbelievable spirit today and that was the difference between last Tuesday (at Sheffield United) and today. “It was a great reaction and the team performance was outstanding. It was not the best football game, we changed the system a little bit in defence and they didn’t create a lot." An eighth clean sheet of the campaign followed a switch in defensive system from Koeman, whose team did not have long to get used to a 3-5-2 formation that now seems to be the fashion in the Premier League. Koeman's compatriot Louis van Gaal has frequently employed a back-three at Manchester United this season, while Liverpool's Brendan Rodgers has become a recent convert to a formation that has often been used on the continent but rarely in England. "We had two training sessions to train with the formation and to tell them about this new system and the most important is you need players who can play the system," Koeman added. "I think the moment was good to change the system. Finally, always if the coach is winning, he is doing a good job." (Reporting by Toby Davis; editing by Ken Ferris)