Erik ten Hag's stoically watched Manchester United lose against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on the final day of the 2021/22 season.
Ten Hag attended the game with assistants Mitchell van der Gaag and Steve McClaren and the lifeless performance indicated the extent of the challenge ahead at Old Trafford, a once impenetrable castle that had become too easy to breach.
Just a day after that defeat, the club were conscious of ushering in a new era and Ten Hag was unveiled to the media, where he discussed his early targets for the season and how he intended to lift United from the doldrums.
Ten Hag said his plan was 'huge' and that he was confident he'd get it right. He succinctly didn't expand on the plan much further, but his approach in the summer transfer window in the subsequent weeks began to do the talking.
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The 53-year-old wanted personalities, which was deemed central to his rebuild. Tyrell Malacia, Christian Eriksen, Lisandro Martinez, Antony and Casemiro were signed on permanent deals and those players have been key in the mentality shift.
After a disastrous campaign, the dressing room was widely accused of lacking leaders and Martinez and Casemiro filled that void. Eriksen leads by example while Antony has fiery South American characteristics every manager would want.
Ten Hag's desire to sign characters has been reflected on the pitch. The team has shown personality and supporters have responded, with the connection between the club and fans having been rebuilt on the back of it being shattered.
There have certainly been bumps in the road along the way this season, with unexplainable away performances against Manchester City, Liverpool and Sevilla, but the players, to their credit, managed to bounce back on each occasion.
United secured Champions League football, won the Carabao Cup and made the FA Cup final. The results at Old Trafford have been excellent this term, with 48 points won at home. The castle walls have finally been repaired.
Only City finished the campaign with a superior home record. The team deservedly earned praise and Paul Scholes, who didn't pull any punches in his punditry last year, thinks the approach of signing personalities has been crucial.
Scholes, speaking to club media, said: "I think for two or three years at least, this team’s been accused of lacking leaders. I think there's a few leaders in the team. When you think of the experience of Casemiro and Martinez.
"They are great characters, they have personality and his [Casemiro] experience and I think that's all changed around a little bit. They've got a belief in them as well. I don't think, you know, they don't dominate games as much as they probably like to.
"But they’ve found a way to win and that's the most important thing. He's [Ten Hag] just no nonsense. I think, in the past, the players at this club have probably played the way they want to rather than the way the manager wants to.
"I think he’s totally turned that around. The players do what their manager wants, they stick to what he wants off the pitch, on the pitch, and I think everyone's seeing the benefits from that."
As it happened, Ten Hag's confidence in his first season plan was not misplaced. His transfer policy last summer, based heavily on players he already knew, was questioned but results and a trophy have vindicated the risky approach.
The culture and mentality within the dressing room have been addressed and that was overdue. Just as Scholes suggested, it seemed certain individuals at the club in the past wielded too much power and the balance has been restored.
The next challenge for Ten Hag is to eventually, perhaps the season after next, mount a credible Premier League title charge, which is an even bigger challenge than inheriting a broken dressing room and instilling discipline again.
United need a few more quality additions - a striker, a younger midfielder and a goalkeeper - but firstly, those new signings will need to have the necessary character to play for Manchester United, which wasn't a priority in the past.
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