There's still a long way to go and nothing has been won yet but the difference at Machester United after just a few short months is clear.
Erik ten Hag's team remains a work in process. That's obvious. A new striker is needed first and foremost to add the extra firepower to make Champions League qualification more likely. Yet another quality passer of the ball could be useful to further engrain the Dutchman's ideal style and another quality right-back is needed at some point to provide competition for Diogo Dalot - though Aaron Wan-Bissaka is trying hard to become it.
Aside from new signings, the players currently at Ten Hag's disposal still need more time working under his stewardship to fully get a grip on his methods. There's no shame in that. This is a long-term project and it will take time for United to fully form in his image. Even Manchester City didn't win the league in their first season under Pep Guardiola.
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But the start Ten Hag has already made certainly bodes well for the future. The former Ajax boss came into an incredibly tough job following United's worst-ever Premier League campaign and the rotten mood within the changing room following Ole Gunnar Solskajer and Ralf Rangnick's tenures.
On the field, there was little tactical plan that could be deciphered. They didn't know what to do and looked bad not doing it.
But as Victor Lindelof, one of the several players who has improved an upturn in form, has outlined, the team is now working as a cohesive unit once more.
“I think as a defensive unit we work really hard to keep a clean sheet, but I have to mention the whole team; the midfield and the strikers," he told United's official website. "Everyone needs to do their job. We work as a team.”
It may seem like the absolute basics and that's because it is. It shouldn't really be worth celebrating. But United have been without such basic fundamentals for so long that it stands out so starkly. Even the most disgusting cup of stale Bovril would taste divine after a few days lost in the desert.
Off the field might have been even worse. Indiscipline was rife. The toxic atmosphere could be sensed. The confidence of so many players was through the floor. Lindelof, Dalot, Bruno Fernandes, Luke Shaw, Anthony Martial and especially Marcus Rashford have all improved dramatically since Ten Hag arrived and that's no coincidence.
His biggest achievement in the United hot seat so far has been his deft handling of Cristiano Ronaldo. Despite the dearly departed's infantile rants to the contrary, Ten Hag did nothing but treat him with the utmost respect on the two occasions in which he was insubordinate - even giving him the captain's armband two weeks after his early exit against Tottenham.
The nauseating interview with the sycophantic Piers Morgan got Ronaldo the escape route he couldn't find by traditional means but also served to solidify Ten Hag's position further and got a disruptive personality out of the changing room.
As Lindelof details, the impact is already being felt in the group: “I think the feeling in the squad has been very, very good. Everyone wants to win, especially in training, we want to improve. The spirit has been high, that helps when you want to win games.”
It's still early days and ultimately Ten Hag will be judged on the trophies he does or doesn't win but the work he has already done is vital for the club to begin its long-awaited rise.
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