Newcastle, crucially, did not ease off after taking the lead, though.

The hosts scored the goal that “killed the game” in the words of Mourinho after the break.

Rather than trying to settle for a 1-0 win, Howe introduced Harvey Barnes midway through the second half alongside Joelinton.

And, just like against Union Saint-Gilloise this month, Barnes looked eager to impress from the bench.

Yet even the substitute will have been surprised by the team-mate who set up his first after Pope single-handedly launched a superb counter-attack with a 65-yard throw from his own box, which Howe hailed as a “thing of beauty”.

Benfica defender Antonio Silva rushed across to try to cut out the danger but misjudged the flight of the ball and Barnes pounced, finishing clinically off the upright.

As much as Newcastle players rushed to celebrate with Barnes, Bruno Guimaraes, Dan Burn, Malick Thiaw and Sven Botman tellingly mobbed Pope to congratulate him.

But Newcastle, and Barnes, were not finished yet. There was still time for the substitute to add a third after Gordon teed him up.

Barnes, like Gordon, has embraced this stage with the pair scoring seven goals combined in just three games in the competition.

By way of contrast, they have yet to find the net in the Premier League this season.

“It’s a head-scratcher for me,” Howe said. “Because we know their qualities, we know they’re goalscorers, we know how good players they are – and that goes for another few players in the squad.

“When you see us play like we did tonight, how we attacked and the amount of chances we created, it’s a difficult one for us to work out.

“But all we can do is return to the Premier League and return with the same attitude. If the attitude is there, the quality will show.”