SOUTHAMPTON manager Ronald Koeman expects Stoke to once again provide a tough challenge in their Capital One Cup clash – just days after his side beat the Potters in the Premier League.

A Sadio Mane first-half strike proved the difference between the two teams at St Mary's on Saturday.

That only told half the story as although Saints dominated the opening 45 minutes, they were given some scares towards the end of the encounter before holding on for all three points to move up to second in the league.

Mark Hughes' men get the opportunity to claim instant revenge when they welcome Southampton to the Britannia Stadium tonight and although Koeman is not underestimating the Potters, he does not expect them to try a fresh approach on their home ground.

"I don't think (Stoke will play that differently) - in football you know everything of each other and there are no surprises," said Koeman.

"We have our way of playing. The way of playing of Stoke is different. Now we know it's a tough opponent and we have to work hard.

"In the first half on Saturday we showed our qualities and we were the best team on the pitch.

"But if you don't score the second one and you create a lot of opportunities then you know until the last second it is 1-0 and it is very difficult."

While he is keen to progress in the cup, Koeman may opt to rest some of his key players, with his side flying high in the league, but insists he will not make wholesale changes.

"We don't have that quality to change eight or nine positions because the group is not like the big teams in England," he added. "I don't like that because I like rotation, but not to change everybody."

MARK BOWEN has revealed Stoke have changed their tactics for defending set-pieces over concerns that Ryan Shawcross is being singled out by referees.

The Potters' skipper gave away a penalty in the 2-1 win over Swansea earlier this month for grappling with Wilfried Bony and is now being deployed as a zonal defender.

Assistant boss Bowen said: "The difficult thing for Ryan, in Saturday's game we tried to pull him out of the spotlight.

"Instead of him actually marking from a corner, we put him in an area where he could just go and attack the ball, which is not his game, he's not been brought up on that.

"It comes to something when you've got to try to change your system of marking around because you're worried that the lad is getting targeted."

Stoke feel Shawcross has earned an unfair reputation as a player who holds in the box, and that he was punished for an offence that is rarely penalised.

That feeling was only exacerbated on Sunday when two Manchester United defenders appeared to wrestle the players they were marking to the ground at a corner but no penalty was given.

"You see it time and time again across the country and Europe as well and, when nothing does happen, it does hurt," he said.

"When you look at the two referees, Michael Oliver for our game, his starting position before the corner came in, as opposed to where Phil Dowd was standing.

"You wonder whether Michael was actually looking for something in that area, whereas Phil maybe had a more general picture."