The signings of Erling Haaland and Darwin Núñez were not mere summer coups for Manchester City and Liverpool. They could signal the start of a new tactical phase.
The F.A. Cup and the Conference League have meaning not because of tradition or design, but when the players, and particularly the fans, decide they are important.
Manchester City and Liverpool meet Sunday in the first of a series of collisions that could decide as many as three trophies. Neither team can be sure of what comes after that.
The Premier League leaders will compete for three high-profile trophies this spring. But does failing to win them all turn a great season into a bad one?