The new coach has taken the club to second in the standings with four wins from their opening six matches despite predictions the Saints would struggle after a fire sale of top talent.
In an interview with the Dutch NOS television program Studio Voetbal, Koeman said he believed the minimum requirement for the club this season would be to improve on their finish under his where predecessor Mauricio Pochettino.
“Eighth was a formidable achievement last season but I feel we can do better," Koeman said.
"We need to remain stay calm despite our tremendous start to the season, after all this is the premier league where you are tested every week. There are tremendous matches all the time," Koeman added.
"The most important is to ensure that you stick to your method of playing, both home and away and that is where I believe you have your best chance of success.
“You can say it has gone beyond expectations because we lost a lot of players and had to buy a lot in. For that kind of transition you need time but from the beginning it has gone really well. Even in the first game, which we lost away to Liverpool, we played well with a good attacking approach and we deserved more than a defeat. We’ve pushed on since then.”
Koeman said he was particularly pleased with Graziano Pelle and Dusan Tadic who he brought with him from the Dutch league.
“There were doubts that Graziano would be able to also score in the Premier League, but he has shown in England he is strong and can play and the goal he scored at the weekend is now being shown the world over. We’ve got compliments for our decision to bring them to England.”
Pelle’s winner against Queens Park Rangers on Saturday was an acrobatic overhead kick to take his tally to four goals. He scored 50 league goals in the previous seasons under Koeman at Feyenoord. Koeman said he was also enjoying being above compatriot Louis van Gaal in the standings. Both Dutch managers are new to the England but Koeman’s early success contrasts with Van Gaal’s stuttering start.
“He’s changed a lot there but even if it hasn’t been fantastic for him, they will climb high. We are enjoying the moment but I think at the end of the ride the tables will be turned,” Koeman added.
(Reporting by Mark Gleeson; Editing by Ed Osmond; mark.gleeson@thomsonreuters.com +27828257807 Messaging mark.gleeson.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net; l)
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