Back in December when things were normal, a long, cold day in London culminated in a warming 30 minutes with Mikel Arteta. Unveiled as Arsenal's new manager, the Spaniard could not have been clearer about what he would demand from his players.
'They have to accept a different way of thinking,' said Arteta. 'This is how we are going to live. Otherwise the tree is going to shake.'
So it was a great day for the headline writers and for Arsenal supporters tired of watching players lacking emotional fibre.
Mikel Arteta strode into Arsenal looking to shake the tree but he'll continue to be frustrated
And then, exactly six months on, we watched Arteta's Arsenal play at Manchester City and Brighton and realised things are still the same.