Amorim had warned a home game against the Saints would prove a more accurate indicator of whether his side had made as much progress as had been claimed in the aftermath of a smash and grab raid at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday and so it proved.

For a good 80 minutes or so, Manchester United were facing the potential ignominy of a fourth consecutive home defeat. The first television sets had only been on sale a few years the last time that happened at Old Trafford.