The most massive of weeks for Saints is off to the perfect start.

If only Saints could play Leicester every game then what a few days it would most likely be.

After four league defeats in a row, Saints really needed to ease the pressure with a home win against a side who have struggled so badly on the road this season.

They also required a confidence boost ahead of the EFL Cup semi-final second leg against Liverpool at Anfield on Wednesday.

Heading there with a one goal lead, and with Liverpool’s patchy recent form, Saints have a real chance to make something meaningful of this season and get to Wembley. It is still a huge ask, but getting to a major final was never meant to be easy.

After Liverpool, Saints host Arsenal in the FA Cup.

There could be so much to look forward to in a week’s time. Or there could be so little with just a midtable slog until the end of the season left.

What Saints had to do was to give themselves a little breathing space, and that meant a win against Leicester, just to ease some nerves and get a sense of momentum into the week.

The Foxes were perfect opponents.

When you analyse Saints’ top flight season, you note that the majority of the seven wins they have notched from 22 games have come against teams that have played against them the way Leicester did.

It was a crazy game plan that the Foxes attempted. Maybe it is the only way they can play, but it was never likely to succeed.

If you are going to play an attacking game against Saints, you had better be really good at it.

The top sides, who don’t compromise no matter who they are facing, have outgunned Saints playing that way.

West Ham, Everton, Bournemouth and now Leicester, who don’t have that outstanding quality, have all lost attempting to play a more expansive game.

Saints have toiled so much against teams who just look to defend, and been beaten by genuine quality.

What Claude Puel dreams of is a team that comes to St Mary’s and is prepared to be open, but without much of a cutting edge. It’s a three point game for Saints every time.

Thanks, then, to Leicester for doing exactly what Saints wanted at a timely moment in the season.

Saints never looked like they were going to do anything other than collect three points from the off.

They dominated from the start with Nathan Redmond heading over when he should have given Saints the lead after six minutes before Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Jay Rodriguez both missed the target from inside the area.

Kasper Schmeichel did well to get down at his near post to deny Redmond before Saints went in front on 20 minutes.

Cedric Soares got on the overlap down the right, and fed the ball back to James Ward-Prowse.

He hit a first time sidefooted shot from just inside the area that moved away from Schmeichel. The big keeper got fingertips to it diving to his right but couldn’t prevent it from going in the far corner.

There was breathing space six minutes before half time as Ward-Prowse whipped in a free kick which Maya Yoshida managed to head down.

Rodriguez arrived right on queue and was able to slam home a finish past Schmeichel.

Leicester had occasionally looked a threat on the break but struggled to turn that into chances, Demarai Gray twice cutting in and firing off target.

The second half was similarly dominant for Saints, albeit it took them until the final minutes to add to their goal tally.

Hojbjerg should have got a goal when Leicester presented him with the ball after trying to play out from the back.

The midfielder was gifted the opportunity to pick his spot from inside the area but failed to hit the target.

Saints briefly thought they had a third when Wes Morgan turned into his own net from Ward-Prowse’s free kick on 75 minutes, but referee Michael Oliver consulted with his linesman and ruled it out for offside against Maya Yoshida, who was tussling with Morgan in the box.

Morgan had already missed Leicester’s best chance by that point, turning over from six yards out, and must have concluded it was not his day when he clumsily brought down Shane Long in the area to concede a penalty.

Dusan Tadic stepped up and slotted it into the top corner four minutes from time.

The only downside for Saints was the injury that forced off Virgil van Dijk.

How Saints need him to be leading the team this week with Jose Fonte having departed.

Whether that can happen or not remains to be seen, but Saints got exactly what they needed out of this game – a confidence boosting win, and some goals.

It sets the week up perfectly. What a week it might be.