While there have certainly been lows this season, Manchester United have, in general, made an impressive start to the campaign - with Erik ten Hag appearing to have solved a number of issues that the club suffered from last term. The Dutchman, who arrived from Ajax in the summer, has, for now, got people on side, and things are looking up.
It was a nightmare start to the season, with losses against Brighton and Brentford in the opening two matches. However, the Reds have responded well in the past couple of months and have climbed up the Premier League table, while also putting themselves in a good position in the Europa League.
After relying heavily on Cristiano Ronaldo last season - with the Portuguese international finishing as the club's top goalscorer with 24 goals - the Reds have looked a better unit this term, and goals are coming from all areas of the pitch. The 37-year-old has, on a personal level, endured a difficult season so far and it looks increasingly likely that the veteran frontman will leave the club at some point next year.
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Marcus Rashford is currently the top scorer with five goals, while Antony, Anthony Martial and Jadon Sancho all have three. The Reds have got goals coming from several different players - and Ten Hag is benefitting from the Premier League's substitution rule.
Seven of United's last nine goals in all competitions have come from substitutes. Top-flight sides are able to make five substitutions per game from this season onwards - a rule that was already in place in the other four major leagues in Europe. Top-flight sides were allowed to make five changes following Project Restart in the 2019/20 season, but the majority of teams voted to revert to the three substitutions rule.
While some sides were still against the rule, the majority of teams were in favour for this term, and clubs are now able to make a maximum of five changes in a single game.
Last season, interim boss Ralf Rangnick, speaking in April of this year, suggested that United’s dressing room would have benefitted from already having the five substitutions rule in place, and insisted that it was something the league needed to look at introducing for the new campaign.
United's interim manager argued that the ability to make five subs would help with player care, especially given the amount of games players at 'top clubs' play in a season. He also suggested that it would help prevent a lack of harmony in dressing rooms.
"For sure, we should have had that (five subs) this season," Rangnick told United's in-house media. "I would have loved to have it this season, for various reasons.
"It’s player care, to make sure in times like this you don’t have too many injuries, even more so with the number of games that players have to play for the big clubs. The second thing is it’s good for young players because it gives them more game-time and also for the atmosphere in the locker room and around the whole team, it’s better.
"If you have 18 on-field players on the player squad list and can only substitute three of them, you will always have five players who will not come on, so therefore I think it’s overdue that this happens, even more so because in the other big five leagues, five substitutes are normal."
The harmony among the current crop of players does, without a doubt, appear to be much stronger than it was last season. It's unclear if that is a direct result of the increased chance of playing time, but it will certainly help. Moreover, with Ten Hag able to make more game changes, youngsters have been given the opportunity to feature.
Alejandro Garnacho, for example, featured early on in the campaign, and even if some of his under-21 teammates are yet to get on the pitch, several of them have made the bench and are likely to get their chance in the coming weeks.
United have struggled for goals off the bench in recent seasons, but it appears that - with the added element of being able to introduce up to five players - they have added that to their arsenal this term. The need for managers to be able to introduce more fresh faces was evident last season, and even now, certain players are still playing nearly 70 games a campaign.
Rangnick, like many of his opposition coaches, had been calling for additional substitutions for several months, so when the decision was made to make it happen, there was a feeling of common sense prevailing. Ten Hag has certainly utilised his bench well in recent weeks and has benefited from the rule change.
While the Dutchman will be keen for his starting players to begin finding the net from the off, he is well aware that he can introduce firepower from the bench - and his substitutes are starting to deliver on a consistent basis.
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