There is no metric for that that drop of the shoulder feint that buys space every time. Numbers cannot explain the ease with which he sorts out his feet, shifting from left to right like a bipolar politician. And they cannot measure the speed of judgment, decisions processed and finalised in fractions of time. According to Watkins, Coutinho’s brain works too quickly for the rest. A grinning Gerrard agreed: “Phil was one of the reasons I called it a day and went to America. He’s the reason why I’ve got six screws in my left groin and I’m on my way to a new hip!”

Watkins himself had a fine game, netting in consecutive matches having gone seven without. His finish was a superb curled effort, having spun away from Jack Stephens with ease. A neat one-two with Coutinho almost brought a second, while twice he went close to assisting the Brazilian. Coutinho would get on the scoresheet eventually, but not before setting up a collector’s item for Luiz.  

Ings would complete the scoring against his former employers, a difficult finish made to look simple. A fairy-tale move to Birmingham it has not been, but having also assisted Watkins, there were signs the partnership could flourish with Coutinho orchestrating. “It’s not just what Phil’s bringing to the table, it’s the lift and the belief he has given his teammates,” admitted Gerrard. “If you said to Danny and Ollie – ‘what do you need behind you?’ –  they would say Philippe Coutinho. Why? Because he creates chances and delivers on the big stage.”

Gerrard is a self-proclaimed perfectionist. He wants further evolution, from a side dangerous in the transition to one able to exercise control. “I almost want the team to forget the score line and keep going because you’re rehearsing how you want it to look in terms of the big picture,” he said. 

Philippe Coutinho leads Aston Villa assault after Steven Gerrard tweaks outfox Southampton

Raise a smile from Steven Gerrard, and you can be certain it has been a good day at the office. Last to depart following an emphatic swatting aside of Southampton, the Aston Villa manager grinned, punched the air and disappeared down the tunnel. For the first time in three months, Villa Park headed home happy.  

Ollie Watkins opened the scoring early, before a 10-minute triptych ended the contest. Douglas Luiz applied finishing touches to a delicious second shortly before the break, Philippe Coutinho and Danny Ings then striking in the space two second half minutes.  

“I’ve got nothing but praise for the players, how they went about today,” said Gerrard. “They really backed up last week’s performance. I always go back to how good we were out of possession. Again, we really owned the pitch. We got both sides of the game spot on.

Gerrard’s small tweaks have had a huge impact, a newly formed diamond midfield bringing back-to-back wins and clean sheets. With Luiz keeping them ticking at the base, and Coutinho providing Brazilian shimmy aplenty – watching him really does warm the heart. Gerrard was left purring: “I thought at times – with all due respect to everyone else – he showed a level that was above the game. It was a pleasure to be in the stadium.”