Sandro Tonali anticipated being "more nervous" than usual about coming up against former club Newcastle United for the first time. You suspect the Tottenham Hotspur midfielder felt a little sick following their 2-0 defeat on Saturday evening. "Sandro, what's the score?" the away fans taunted in the closing stages as the substituted Italian looked on.
This bruising loss was certainly not the reunion Tonali had in mind after joining Spurs for a fee worth up to £100m last month. It is still very early days, of course, but Newcastle appear to have reinvested the money wisely after spending a similar combined amount on midfielder Nico Gonzalez, defender Amar Dedic and goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek. A number of the players head coach Matthias Jaissle inherited, such as goalscorers Anthony Elanga and Yoane Wissa, also look reborn.
Yet he was rightly not getting carried away following his first Premier League win. "We have our own goals and we are clear with that," Jaissle said. Now you write everything is top, everything is great.
"We don't follow that too much. We are emotionally very stable and don't see the highs higher than it is now. "It is a moment to enjoy as well after that start, but we are also smart enough to see a long journey ahead of us and there will be challenges as well." Jaissle, by his own admission, "likes challenges" and this was certainly a big one to take on.
It is exactly 30 days since predecessor Eddie Howe oversaw what proved to be his final match in charge, a sobering 4-1 friendly defeat against Bristol City, before stepping down. Newcastle had sold Tonali. Anthony Gordon had left for Barcelona.
Captain Bruno Guimaraes' sights were set on a move to Arsenal. The start of the season was also rapidly approaching. Newcastle have made further additions since then, but only one of their seven summer signings, Gonzalez, has previously played in the Premier League.
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