Mikel Arteta hasn't always been as popular with Arsenal fans as he is now, particularly when it comes to the temperature of those supporters who make the loudest noise on social media.
Arteta has been the figurehead of a transformation in the Gunners squad but there have been some hard decisions to make during his three years at the Emirates, most notably the decision to get rid of Mesut Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Both were amongst the best players in the squad on their day and had an army of fans online. They were personalities who were as big as the club in the modern age, but Arteta could sense the damage they were doing and essentially forced both out.
READ MORE: Beating Arsenal set the tone for Ten Hag's tactical development
It's a strategy that has paid dividends. He now has a young, united squad that could well be shock title winners this season. To a man, they are playing from Arteta's crib sheet and the Spaniard is now the most important person within that football organisation.
A similar transformation is happening at Manchester United under Erik ten Hag. The Dutchman is making such decisions even quicker than Arteta, who initially brought Ozil back into the fold and persisted with Aubayemang for as long as possible.
Ten Hag benefitted from the sheer number of players out of contract last summer. It saved money on the wage bill and shrunk the average age of the squad. In allowing Paul Pogba to leave, it rid United of a player whose stature and presence dominated the dressing room.
Pogba was the kind of character who could create divisions in a squad and his public attempts to force his way out over the previous three years had become wearing and jarring. He had his admirers and his acolytes in the dressing room, but his presence wasn't always beneficial. Ten Hag avoided the difficulty of having to handle him and the squad are better off for his absence.
Then there was the Cristiano Ronaldo issue, which landed on Ten Hag's in-tray by the time he had returned to Carrington for pre-season. The 37-year-old wanted out last summer and his actions put his manager in an awkward bind. Initially, Ten Hag wanted to keep him, then when it became clear his approach was going to be an issue he would have let him go, but there was an absence of suitors.
In time, the explosive and ludicrous interview Ronaldo gave to Piers Morgan in November might be looked upon as a turning point for Ten Hag. After a series of mis-steps and disciplinary faux pas, it had to be the end of the road.
Now Ten Hag has his own squad to mould. A dressing room dominated by the personalities, egos and celebrities of Pogba and Ronaldo is now much more collegiate. There is no stand-out character in the group, no dominant figure attracting column inches on the front and back pages.
The dynamic of the dressing room has shifted towards the low-key professionalism and character of players such as Lisandro Martinez and Casemiro. The departure of such domineering, high-profile figures as Pogba and Ronaldo has empowered players who were already at the club, most notably Bruno Fernandes.
A change of tone like that doesn't guarantee success, but it can be part of the journey towards it. A year ago, as United stumbled from one disaster to another under Ralf Rangnick, supporters would comment on what an unlikeable team they had become. They'd stopped winning but they were arrogant as well. There didn't appear to be much unity in the group.
That has clearly changed now and the atmosphere at Old Trafford this season has been evidence that the bond between team and fans has been recaptured. Matchgoing regulars like not only what they're seeing, but they admire the characteristics of the squad Ten Hag is creating.
It's a similar story at the Emirates, where songs about Arteta now dominate on a matchday. There are clear similarities between the journey of these two clubs under their present managers, but Arteta has been in post longer, so it's natural Arsenal are more advanced down the path.
That might be enough to win them the Premier League title this season, but United can be confident they also have a manager that is capable of eliciting a transformation on the same scale.
READ NEXT:
