There is an old saying in football that 'attack wins you games, defence wins you titles.' It isn't totally accurate, but there is decent sentiment in it at least.
Indeed, the team with the best defensive record has won the Premier League title in four of the previous five seasons, though their victories have been driven just as much by the massive amount of goals they have scored on the other end.
It is a trend that could well be bucked this year too, with third-placed Newcastle having the current best top-flight defence, though they are 11-points behind the leaders.
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The truth is that a combination of both a potent attack and a resilient defence are needed to win the Premier League these days, and Manchester United are almost halfway there.
It is a remarkable change in fortunes considering just how poorly they played a year ago. Not only did they slump to a sixth-place finish last season, but they also ended the season with a goal difference of exactly 0, the first time they failed to finish a campaign without a positive goal difference in 32 years.
United's horrendous season was also headlined by the fact they conceded 57 league goals, their worst defensive season since the 1978-79 campaign (63).
With such a dramatic turnaround required, mounting a title challenge this season was always going to be a huge ask, but laying the foundations for one certainly hasn't been out of the question.
To accomplish this, Erik ten Hag emphasised the importance of tightening up United's defence, with the simple belief that if they did not concede in a match, they would have a good chance of scoring at the other end to win.
The United manager was guilty of sticking with Harry Maguire in the opening two matches of the season, games which United lost and were dragged apart defensively.
Yet, it proved to be a blessing in disguise. The defensive disasters led to a new partnership of Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane, while the club spent big to sign the revolutionary Casemiro to strengthen their midfield.
It was also an eye-opener to the amount of work that needed to be done at United, serving as a reality check of the effort they would need to put in to be a success under their new manager.
That unity has been a big part of their defensive transformation. Ten Hag has made it clear that keeping clean sheets starts from the front, and United have been noticeably better with regard to their pressing and out of possession work this season.
With 15 clean sheets across all competitions this season, United rank third for the most clean sheets across teams in major European leagues. These stats are skewed somewhat by the vast number of matches they have played, but it is still a remarkable feat to be so robust at the back.
United's record has been harmed by keeping only two shutouts across their last six matches, but they still have an incredible return of six clean sheets in their ten matches since the World Cup break.
What is perhaps most promising, though, is that Ten Hag is hungry for more and acknowledges there is still a lot of work to do to make the side robust enough to rise to the top of the Premier League.
"In general, against Arsenal we defended very well,’ he said after a 3-2 loss. "They didn't get clean shots, was one time from free kick. There was a lot of defence between the ball and the goal.
"But all the goals were avoidable and that's my point – it cannot happen. When you concede three goals in a top game you can't win, that's one of the conclusions. We have to take this lesson."
United have a lot of work to do if they are to become the meanest defence in the Premier League again, but they are certainly a lot closer to doing so than they have been in years.
United have the foundations of a defence that can win them a title, now they just need the attack to match.
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