What cannot be disputed is that both Newcastle United and Manchester United are moving in the right direction, led by managers who have galvanised players, staff and fanbase alike.
Eddie Howe and Erik ten Hag are clearly the right men for their respective clubs, turning around two enormous ships sailing in the wrong direction and starting to list.
Progress can be measured by runs of victories but given the huge investment at both, the true benchmarks are trophies lifted.
On that front, it's been a frustrating six-year drought for Manchester United since Jose Mourinho guided them to the EFL Cup and the Europa League back in 2017 - an unreliable bellwether for his tenure, as it turned out.