To paraphrase the old saying, like teacher, like pupil.

When Louis van Gaal took over as Manchester United manager in 2014, his number one priority was to get the club back into the Champions League, as they finished fourth in the Premier League and dominated their play-off round tie with Club Brugge. Last year, Jose Mourinho faced the same challenge, but guided the team to a title in the Europa League, thus booking a spot in the group stage of Europe’s top club competition.

Now can he maintain the string of second-season success that he’s enjoyed in the past? In both stints at Chelsea, his second season was marked by Premier League titles. His “sophomore” (and final, as it turned out) campaign at Inter Milan was a Treble-winning season, the first Italian club to do so. His second team at Real Madrid, in 2011/12, arguably had the best chance to win the Champions League of his three seasons, losing to Bayern Munich on penalties in the semifinals.

As is the case with every upcoming season, much will be made about the new faces on the roster. Romelu Lukaku and Nemanja Matic have each already experienced success in England, and will be hungry to continue that with a new club. Victor Lindelof may find life in England intimidating at first, coming from Benfica, but he can rely on seeing what Eric Bailly accomplished in his debut Premier League campaign.

Speaking of Bailly, how will he and the others who joined this time last time fare in their second season with United? Henrikh Mkhitaryan emerged as a Europa League specialist of sorts, but may face pressure to play just as well in the Champions League. Paul Pogba, meanwhile, will not only be freed up to play as an attacking midfielder, but is now free from bearing the “world’s most expensive player” tag thanks to Neymar. His 2016/17 campaign wasn’t awful, but look for an improved Pogba this season.

The Red Devils open this season Sunday at home against West Ham United. Three points will be the minimum goal, but fans would certainly hope for a more entertaining style of play than they were treated to last season, if not the kind of thrill that was seen in Friday’s Arsenal-Leicester match. Are United finally back to “title contender” status after four seasons of a rival lifting the trophy?