This is the Newcastle United change Eddie Howe has 'sensed' among his players

Speaking after last weekend’s 3-0 win over Norwich City, Newcastle United’s head coach said the “for the first time, the shackles came off a bit”.

Up to then, according to Howe, his team had been playing “resilient, organised football” in an attempt to pull away from the Premier League’s relegation zone. Newcastle’s fans, according to Howe, saw “a glimpse of the future” as the team climbed up to ninth in the division.

Howe hadn’t prepared his team any differently, but he finally saw his players start to “express themselves” after the third goal.

“I don’t think it was necessarily how we prepared, it was more from the players expressing themselves in a moment of confidence,” said United’s head coach.

“I think you have to look back, a lot of our games have been very tight. I think there’s only the Everton game where we had a two-goal cushion, if I’m right.

"Every other game has been going to the wire, so there’s been that pressure, and that feeling. You look back at the Brighton game, the Crystal Palace game, the Leicester game. They were incredibly tight football matches we just managed to get on the right end of.

"Norwich was probably that first game where there was that freedom, we were 3-0 up. The players were enjoying themselves in a slightly different way without the scoreline being in the balance.

"It was more you could just sense the players enjoying that moment for the first time in a while.”