Leeds United are embarking upon what may prove to be a season-defining run of fixtures for their first campaign back in the Premier League.
The Whites returned to action in the top flight after a difficult run of one win in five outings, but four points from Arsenal and Everton have got tails up again.
The next six games will take the club to the New Year and the traditional point at which the league table begins to take shape and set realistic expectations for what may be achievable.
After eight points from the last 21, the chips are most definitely down for United and if they can continue to shake up the natural order of the top flight in their next six it will say plenty about their wider ambitions in the league.
In Chelsea and Manchester United, Marcelo Bielsa’s side must take on two of the league’s most dangerous clubs on their day.
Each of them will provide stern attacking tests and an array of talent acquired for hundreds of millions of pounds.
They will also provide opportunity though. In attacking, they will create space and gaps for Bielsa’s side to exploit. It suits the Whites better if the opponent is not packing their own penalty box.
They also provide the chance to send a message to the rest of the division. As was the case in the clashes with Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City, United have proved they can go toe to toe with the very best and do much more than just survive in this league.
If scalps can be taken from any of those two it would be a statement of intent for the rest of the term and a major shot in the arm for both players and supporters.
With West Ham United and Newcastle United there are different challenges and, in some regards, even tougher elements to contend with.
With the Hammers and the Magpies, there is every chance they set up in the same shape as so many of Bielsa’s banana skins in England.
They stick 10 men behind the ball, pack their banks into the box, restrict the Whites’ space and hit them on the counter with a runner up top.
Again, if they avoid those outcomes, prove they can see off deep blocks, then United will establish themselves comfortably in mid-table or even the top half at the crucial point the league settles down.
On paper, Burnley and West Bromwich Albion look like a sure-fire four points or six, but aside from the former's mauling on Saturday, there are signs of life in both camps of late.
As with West Ham and Newcastle, breaking that pair's deep block down will go some way to showing us what the Whites can do across the longer term.
How the Whites negotiate the next six matches may provide the ideal indicator for what we should expect come May.
