Points weren't coming as easily early in the season as they did last campaign for Southampton, but after defeating last season's champions and weathering draws against two other clubs in the top half of the table, they face a string of promising fixtures that could put them in similar shape before the end of November.
That begins Sunday against Bournemouth at St. Mary's Stadium as the Saints open a stretch of three top-flight matches against clubs in the bottom seven.
Southampton (3-5-2), the darlings of autumn 2014 with eight wins in their first 11 matches, didn't have quite that start this season - totaling six points from six matches as they saw their Europa League season end before September.