Southampton FC supporters will have new play-off fear after this week's developments: View | OneFootball

It has been an incredibly disappointing few days for Southampton in the Championship.

After recording their third consecutive victory in the 3-0 win over Preston North End last Wednesday night, the Saints looked to have put themselves back in automatic promotion contention.

However, Southampton have since suffered back-to-back defeats, and they were beaten 5-0 by Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday night.

It was a game in which the Saints dominated possession but failed to create any meaningful chances, and they were punished by a ruthless performance from the Foxes, with Abdul Fatawu's hat-trick and goals from Wilfred Ndidi and Jamie Vardy sealing all three points for Enzo Maresca's men.

Southampton currently sit fourth in the table, six points behind second-placed Leeds United with just two games of the season remaining.

The Saints can still mathematically finish second, but with a vastly inferior goal difference to Leeds and Ipswich Town, they will realistically have to settle for the play-offs.

Manager Russell Martin issued a damning verdict on his side's performance against Leicester, telling the BBC: "For 60-odd minutes I thought we were good. It was a really tight match. We played some amazing build-up, but it didn't come to enough.

"Their attackers were really ruthless and we were not.

"At the start of the second half we were so good, and were so on top and they scored against the run of play. And after that I did not like one bit what I saw from my team tonight.

"After that there was no togetherness, no character, no fight."

It is difficult to disagree with Martin's assessment, and the two defeats Southampton have suffered this week will raise serious concerns for supporters.

Southampton supporters will be worried ahead of the play-offs

Recent results will undoubtedly increase the anxiety among the Southampton fan base ahead of the play-offs, and Martin's words will have done little to ease their fears.

While Martin was right to be critical of his side's performance, his comments about a lack of togetherness, character and fight are alarming, as these are qualities the Saints will need if they are to win promotion.

Southampton are the joint-second top scorers in the Championship with 85 goals, but they have conceded 61 goals, and defensive issues have plagued them throughout the season.

Tuesday night was the second time the Saints have conceded five goals this campaign, having previously done so at Sunderland in September, while they have conceded four on two occasions, firstly against potential play-off opponents Norwich City and then in the reverse fixture against Leicester.

Southampton have kept just three clean sheets since the start of February, and Martin must find a way to tighten his side up quickly, particularly as they will face some of the division's best attacking teams in the play-offs.

The Saints have been beaten five times since their remarkable 25-game unbeaten run came to an end in mid-February, and the fact their form has declined at the business end of the season perhaps underlines some of the problems that Martin highlighted post-match after the Leicester defeat.

While it was always going to be tough for Southampton to achieve automatic promotion, it has been a big missed opportunity for them to close the gap on the top two.

After conceding a 96th-minute winner in the defeat at Cardiff City on Saturday, Martin would have expected a reaction from his players at Leicester, but in his own words, they put in a "pathetic" performance at the King Power Stadium.

The Saints have bounced back from setbacks previously this season, and they certainly should not be written off, but the last two games have been worrying, and Martin must urgently address the issues with the play-offs fast approaching.