Saturday 25 February 2017 10:42, UK
Claude Puel has backed his patched-up Southampton defence to deal with Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Puel's side will be without key defender Virgil van Dijk when then face Manchester United in the EFL Cup final at Wembley on Sunday, live on Sky Sports.
Teenager Jack Stephens, who is almost half Ibrahimovic's age, will be handed the daunting task of keeping United's leading goalscorer at bay.
However, former Lille boss Puel says Ibrahimovic holds no suprises for his side and claims all of his players can play against the in-form Swede.
"I know Ibrahimovic very well from the French Premier League so I cannot be surprised by him," said Puel.
"In France, he was a fantastic player but all the people say 'Okay, it is the French Premier League and not the English one'.
"But he has come here, he is 35 and he can do a fantastic job, fantastic work. He is clinical, very efficient and also he gives a good authority to the team. He is a character player.
"He is very self-confident - he plays with this. He is a strong man and a strong partner. At Paris St-Germain he gave a good atmosphere around the team and gave his team fantastic confidence.
"He doesn't run a lot but always with a good run, with good play, good gestures. It is fantastic to see him.
"We'll see if Jack starts this game. But for me of course I'm confident with the player, with the squad. I saw at our training camp in Spain very good concentration, very good spirit, quality in the training sessions.
"There was big attention from Jack and all these young players. They stay calm and just focus about what they can have to do.
"All the players can play in my team against Ibrahimovic. They know him now. We will give a good answer."
