Cedric Soares did not feature in Southampton’s 9-0 humbling against Leicester City but he has played a crucial part since. As one of Southampton’s senior players Cedric, along with captain Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, organised and led team meetings as the squad has pieced itself back together.

“We spoke between us, we came together as a group and said ‘sometimes it is better it happened now because there is time to react’,” Cedric says. “Obviously nobody wants it to happen. But it happened and we have time to go from here. It’s a wake-up call. Come on boys, it’s up to us to do better and it’s also our careers. I think the group has this in their heads. You have to step up.”

Cedric has been out injured with a calf problem but he hopes to return for Saturday’s Premier League home fixture against Everton, the first game back at St Mary’s since the Leicester defeat. “It’s frustrating,” the right-back says. “The team doing good or bad, you feel responsible [either way]. When they lose, I lose. Even if I don’t play. And I know also that my team-mates are supporting me to come back.”

Cedric is an important player for Southampton. A Euro 2016 winner with Portugal, who also impressed at the 2018 World Cup and in the Confederations Cup, big clubs have been circling the 28-year-old who also had a successful loan spell at Inter Milan last season, helping them into the Champions League.

Cedric’s future does not appear to be at Southampton where he is now in the final year of his contract and will be a free agent next summer. He had seemed out of manager Ralph Hasenhuttl’s plans last season before returning.

“I have just this season left,” Cedric confirms. “Everyone wants to know about their future but I try not to focus too much about it because if you are doing your job and doing it properly you don’t need to worry about this. This is something for your agent. Obviously Southampton is very important in my career and always will be. But right now after this season I think I am going to make another step and see what is the best for me. It’s a great opportunity and it’s something (being out-of-contract) that maybe happens once in your life for a player.

Soares was part of the Portugal team that won Euro credit: Getty images

“But the most important in football is what happens today. What I always say to people is ‘football is moments’. Tomorrow you don’t know. It’s football. It can change (snaps his fingers) in the last moment. Football is unpredictable. It’s what makes the game exciting.”

Cedric, who joined Southampton in 2015 from Sporting, has been one of the most consistent full-backs in the Premier League with his energy, attacking style and phenomenal crossing and he smiles broadly as he recalls Portugal’s remarkable triumph at Euro 2016. “On his first day the coach (Fernando Santos) came in and said ‘you will win the Euros in 2016’. He said that in the first meeting. We smiled and he said ‘you can smile and laugh all you like but we are going to win in 2016’. When you tell someone so many times the same thing it really stays in your head. It was a kind of fate.”

Cedric played all the knock-out games and the final, dramatically won in extra-time, against host nation France when Portugal overcame the adversity of losing Cristiano Ronaldo to an early injury. “At half-time we came together and Cristiano had a few words with us. He said ‘it will be hard but believe. This is for us. This is our time. It’s not like 2004 when Portugal lost the final. It was for us this time’. And we deserved it. We made history.”

Cedric is close to earning a recall to the national squad which is some achievement given he is competing with Nelson Semedo, Joao Cancelo and Ricardo for the right-back spot and has more caps than his rivals. He almost, also, earned a move away from Southampton after that tournament in 2016.

“Obviously when you win the Euros you are more exposed to other clubs as well. But they (Southampton) showed the commitment; I showed the commitment,” he says, signing a new contract on his return from France and “flying” the following season after which, again, offers were made for him. The problem was Virgil Van Dijk wanted to leave and Southampton could not lose half their defence.

Cedric was not part of the Southampton team thrashed by Leicester credit: Getty images

“There were a few transfer offers,” he says. “A few things going on. I had opportunities to go but the club decided together with me that maybe it wasn’t the right thing to do and we went from there. We started again. It ended up with me and Virgil both staying because the goal of Southampton was to definitely go to the next level in that year. It didn’t happen. I understood the goal because before Southampton was more buying to sell but they wanted to stop doing that, they had new investors. But it was a tough season although, thankfully, we ended up staying in the Premier League and that was the most important thing.”

Van Dijk went in January 2018, joining Liverpool for £75million. “It was an unbelievable offer,” Cedric says. “Football is about moments and that was Virgil’s moment to go and he’s doing great. I am very pleased for him.”

With the changes of manager, with the uncertainly over Cedric’s future and with other players leaving his contract was allowed to run down. “I didn’t go to another club and then the contract just kept running out,” he says. “But right now I am completely focussed on my work and helping the team come out of this situation and then I will have time to decide.”

The campaign was difficult as well, as Southampton started badly under Mark Hughes and before Hasenhuttl arrived. Cedric went on loan to Inter last January but watched every Southampton game. “I knew there was a big possibility for me to go back to Southampton (at the end of the loan),” he says. “I knew that but I couldn’t really say no to Inter. It was a big opportunity, I grew up a lot, I felt comfortable, it’s a massive club with big pressure and big responsibility and I like that. I enjoy it and I proved myself at that level.

“But being back (at Southampton) I was received like always and the coach has spoken positively about me. I didn’t expect, obviously, totally to be back. I didn’t know what would happen but I am here now and am helping as much as I can.”

Cedric is determined to ensure Southampton remain in the Premier League. “It becomes very personal because having something in your career like this is something you don’t want,” he says of fighting relegation. “It’s something that maybe you feel ashamed of. Of course you do not want to disappoint the fans. But first of all we cannot disappoint ourselves and in that moment it becomes a kind of self-pride and in the most difficult moments you have to step up.

“I feel completely adapted, this is my fifth season at Southampton, I respect the club, but we also have to look out for ourselves as well. At the end of the season I will think more about my future and where the opportunities are but the most important is that I focus on now and do my best.”