Southampton suffered a 3-0 defeat to Manchester City on Saturday but Jack Stephens says he is happy with the way his defensive partnership with Maya Yoshida is developing.
With former skipper Jose Fonte having moved to West Ham in January and Virgil van Dijk going down with a long-term ankle injury, manager Claude Puel only had Stephens and the Japanese international available as recognised central defenders.
The duo have played a key role in helping Southampton keep two clean sheets in their last four Premier League games.
'You can see that Maya and I have become stronger together,' Stephens told the club website.