Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl is full of praise for captain Pierre-Emile Højbjerg.

The Dane produced his best performance of the season in last week's 2-1 win against Norwich City and was also at the heart of what Hasenhuttl described as Saints' best away performance of the season at Newcastle United on Sunday.

Hasenhuttl said: “I think the role of the captain is sometimes discussed as a player who has to speak to the other guys in the dressing room or outside on the pitch.

“I'm not a fan of this behaviour because the best thing you can do as a captain is to show on the pitch that you step forward, show up and invest massively by winning balls, working for the team and being positive to every player.

“This is a behaviour that is more important than telling them what they have to do because they get told from me and the other staff.

“He shows he is a leading player by giving the perfect performance, and this is an important thing."