When we reach the business end of a season it is reckoned by soccer's most knowledgeable that it all comes down to fine margins.
Forget it. No way. Not for Geordies. Newcastle lie in wait to offer an ominous welcome to the Saints' bunch of sinners on Sunday having piled up an astonishing seven victories in their last eight matches. Fine margins?
In their relentless pursuit of Champions League qualification the Mags have plundered 10 goals in just two games over four days. Fine margins?
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Their win riot has seen them score five at West Ham, six home to Spurs, and four at Everton. Fine margins?
Not only can Eddie Howe walk on water, the soles of his feet remain bone dry. Honestly it is ridiculous. Take his handling of United's most famous position, centre-forward.
Callum Wilson scored two in a five-goal thrashing of West Ham and was promptly dropped. He never started again until Everton at Goodison in midweek. Meanwhile in exactly the same scenario Alexander Isak hit two during a six-goal humiliation for Spurs and was also promptly left out. Not a problem, Wilson came in and got his brace!
If it is a fascinating, welcome, amazing shoot-out between the two - the best since the Gunfight At OK Corral - here is a thought Eddie. If you ever want to do it Wilson and Isak CAN play together from the start without disturbing your preferred and massively successful tactical formation.
There is no need to utilise the two of them as old-fashioned twin strikers, Howe can retain his format of one central striker and two wide men because Isak has so much in his armoury that he can easily play wide left to Wilson through the middle.
Evidence? His astounding creation of Jacob Murphy's goal. If Joe Willock produced the assist of the season against Tottenham and another quality one for Joelinton on Merseyside then what Isak conjured up was Maradona and Messi all rolled into one. Nearer to home the Premier League player who sashayed like that was the majestic Thierry Henry.
Isak showed a more devastating sway of the hips than Elvis Presley to take out defender after defender up the by-line in the tightest of space without running the ball out of play to clip a cross that left Murphy with the simplest of finishes. Wilson can only play as a No 9 but Isak can play where he wants to play or his manager wants him to play.
What is wonderful right now is that United have a clutch of lethal finishers. Wilson has 13 goals, Miggy Almiron 11, Isak 10, and Joelinton eight (league and cup) and there are still half a dozen matches to go!
Southampton have been awful all season. They are rock bottom of the PL and having lost their south coast derby home to Bournemouth midweek will arrive on our patch with morale lower than a snake's belly. They are doomed.
It is true that the last time they filled up the petrol tank and took to the road they shocked table-toppers Arsenal rigid, leading 2-0 and 3-1 before sacrificing two points. However I cannot see them doing that again up here. No way.
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Recent history as well as form heavily favours United. This will be the fourth meeting between the two this season and Newcastle have won each time: 4-1 away in the PL plus 1-0 on the south coast and 2-1 here in a League Cup double header.
During that time Southampton have opted for someone different inside their dug-out to try and change an ominous trend. First they had Ralph Hasenhuttl only to sack him, then Nathan Jones for the two Carabao Cup ties, and now Ruben Selles at the young age of 39.
The myth perpetuated from outside of our region that Newcastle have been transformed from habitual relegation strugglers into Europe certainties by Saudi money has surely been exploded given that as many as nine players who took part in the six-goal epic dismantling of Tottenham last time on cathedral soil were inherited by Howe.
That says much about the coaching expertise of Howe and his staff but also an awful lot about the limitations of the previous manager and his helpers. Think about it - Joelinton was a non-scoring centre-forward of some embarrassment, Miggy Almiron little more than a road runner, Jacob Murphy may as well have been called A N Other, while Sean Longstaff was battling his younger brother Matty to be considered the best midfielder in his family. We get the point, it is about time others did too.
Perhaps slowly, reluctantly, those who have curled their lip at Newcastle's Hollywood rise from the ashes of despair will see the obvious by the time Champions League football is officially confirmed for us after a 20-year absence and not for Spurs, Liverpool and Chelsea!
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