When Eddie Howe called for a response from his Newcastle team following the crushing end of their nine-game winning streak last weekend, he will have been aware that the immediate task ahead was the softest the Premier League can provide; perhaps destined to statistically be the simplest in top-flight history.

Results aside – an absurd combination of words in a sporting context – Southampton are no pushovers. But they rarely draw and almost never win. And this is a Newcastle side with serious intentions and some serious players.