For Manchester United supporters, the past few weeks have been difficult.
The Reds secured Champions League football with a third place finish in the Premier League, having lifted the Carabao Cup in February. But they have had to watch city rivals Manchester City emulate the famous United class of '99 in lifting a Treble.
Pep Guardiola's side wrapped up their third successive top flight crown with three matches to spare and then beat United 2-1 in the FA Cup final. A 1-0 win over Inter Milan on Saturday added a first Champions League trophy to the honours list and completed a dream season for those in blue.
United remain behind their noisy neighbours but this campaign has been one of progress and there is a belief that under Erik ten Hag the club can restore former glories and challenge at home and abroad. It will take a successful summer, both on and off the pitch, but the 2023-24 campaign could offer something of a perfect storm for the Reds to bridge the gap.
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"We don't want to stay here; we want to go higher up," said Ten Hag, when discussing next season's aims. "We want to increase our levels and compete for the top two. We have to demand more and increase our levels."
City have reached an incredible high, and the challenge for Guardiola and Co is to hit those heights once again. But a lengthy campaign, extended by a mid-season World Cup, with so much riding on matches in the second half of the season will have taken a physical and mental toll.
Guardiola's side must now go again, it's what made United so impressive under Sir Alex Ferguson, but it is not an easy task. No team has ever won England's top flight four years running while only Real Madrid have retained the Champions League in the past 23 years.
With uncertainty surrounding the future of captain Ilkay Gundogan and fellow midfielder Bernardo Silva, there is work for Guardiola to do. Clearly, they will once again be overwhelming favourites but United could position themselves as the closest challengers, particularly considering the state of the other members of the 'top six.'
Arsenal proved plenty wrong under Mikel Arteta as they mounted an unlikely title challenge but ultimately they came up short. They still need to add depth to a squad and, like City, must prove they can retain their level. With a Champions League campaign thrown into the mix, it adds up to a testing challenge with no guarantees.
Liverpool finished the season like a train after falling below expectations for long periods. But the Merseysiders are in transition under Jurgen Klopp and the Anfield chief will be moulding new arrivals with existing stars as he seeks to restore them to the summit. You wouldn't bet against them challenging once again but it certainly won't be a forgone conclusion as they seek to re-boot their midfield while hoping recent arrivals Cody Gakpo and Darwin Nunez can provide the necessary firepower.
For Chelsea and Tottenham, last season were campaigns to forget. Neither will be in Europe next term and both are now under new management. With huge question marks surrounding the state of their squads, and the pair being at the start of what looks like a multi-year project, it's hard to make a case for either gatecrashing the top three.
Twelve months down the line though, both could have higher ceilings and renewed title ambitions. It all adds up to an intriguing 2023-24 campaign. One that will of course be shaped by summer transfer business, but United under Ten Hag are well placed to achieve the Dutchman's target of securing second spot in the league.
They have an established core, flashes of brilliance in attacking areas and a solid foundation on which to build. Natural progression could well see them emerge as City's biggest title challengers and take advantage of holes in their rivals. Leicester City managed to win the league in 2016 amid transition and turmoil elsewhere, United can hope and dream of following suit.
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