Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino had been careful not to dismiss the challenge of relegated Newcastle United. Some journalists attending his final pre-match press conference of the season in May were speaking of sealing second in the Premier League for his team like it was a formality.
That Pochettino was not so presumptuous was close to the only consolation as Newcastle thrashed Tottenham 5-1 that weekend. Then again, there was no escaping the ignominy of a result that ended a good campaign so humiliatingly (to cap it off north London rivals Arsenal pipped them to runners-up spot).
A new season means a fresh start, but even such beginnings are products of what preceded them. The test of character facing Tottenham in 2016-17 is very much informed by the best and worst of Pochettino's second year in charge.
The Newcastle loss did not tarnish the former. The north Londoners had already lost the title race with Leicester City a fortnight earlier and were understandably deflated by that disappointment.
It was, however, a reminder of the distance Spurs still need to travel to be genuinely successful—or at least so competitive that pride remains a priority even when they fall short of greater targets.
"In the first 45 minutes we were very bad in the way we played, without intensity, it was like we were on holiday and this is the result," Pochettino told his club's official website in the aftermath of the Newcastle defeat.
"We cannot arrive in the last few games of the season and be the opposite of everything we have shown all season."
The obstacles in front of their attempts to return to the high levels they reached so often are only growing in number, too.
Club affairs in England this summer have largely been dominated by teams who finished below third-place Tottenham in 2015-16. The dominance of Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United in off-season changes and discussion has even overshadowed talk of title-winners Leicester to an extent.
Chelsea—the London rivals and deposed champions who found springtime motivation to scupper Spurs' own challenge—have replaced Guus Hiddink with Antonio Conte. Fresh from leading Italy's sterling Euro 2016 effort, his plans to reinvigorate the Blues have included raiding the Foxes for N'Golo Kante.
Pep Guardiola is now in charge at City, Jose Mourinho at United. Two of world football's most successful managers have inherited talented sides and freedom to spend significantly in making them less susceptible to the issues of form, strategy and mentality that plagued them last season.
Most fans will be aware of all this already (and we have not even talked about Arsenal, Liverpool, West Ham United or any other Leicester-like hopeful here). But it is worth repeating to highlight the taxing climate Spurs' general recent improvement must survive in.
The Newcastle game ended up reinforcing points Pochettino had made days earlier regarding what his team need to do to get better.
After the fiery, unhinged denouement of their title challenge at Chelsea, and the anticlimax of losing their last home match to Southampton, working on Tottenham's mental capacity was deemed a priority.
"I think it’s not only that we need to assess the last few games, I think to move on and to grow up and to improve we need to learn," Pochettino said. "I think next season, more than tactics or physical condition, we need to improve the mental area."
The capitulation that followed at St. James' Park underlined concerns raised by that final stretch. This was not just about seeing games out, it was about developing the fortitude required over a long season.
Disappointed as he would be by it, ahead of the fixture Pochettino was confident his squad had the scope to make such progress. He again talked about "the mental state we need to improve to be more strong in a different period of the game," but he noted this would come through something bigger.
"Yes, but you know I think for us [it] was maybe the first season altogether, this young group that play for big things," the 44-year-old said."Then we need to understand that sometimes it’s not only playing well on the pitch, it’s another game we need to manage too."
The first returnees to pre-season have stuck to a familiar script of good intentions for the campaign to come.
"Training is tough but we need to do this because we want to have a great season," Clinton Njie told the club website. "You saw last season that we were one of the best and fittest teams in the Premier League so I think this is the time to work harder to enable us to perform at the top level."
Spurs' stamina did stand them in good stead. Pochettino will be aware that honing his players' resolve and belief is just as vital this summer.
He has to revitalise a team who enjoyed a great season but ultimately fell agonisingly short of a truly historic achievement. It is an achievable task if their general resilience in that period is taken into account, but not a simple one.
The notable English and Belgian contingents in his team are coming off frustrating experiences from Euro 2016.
Striker Harry Kane had a torrid time on international duty, struggling in a system that did him few favours. Eric Dier and Kyle Walker had solid tournaments for England, but Dele Alli and Danny Rose may need some boosting.
Belgium went a round further, but the Spurs contingent seldom enjoyed their time in France.
Mousa Dembele barely played and Jan Vertonghen suffered an injury that will cost him a proper pre-season. Toby Alderweireld missed his usual club centre-back partner, deployed at full-back. Nacer Chadli may still be reeling from not even making the squad.
All this may only serve to motivate Tottenham's Euro 2016 participants further; Kevin Wimmer and Hugo Lloris suffered different kinds of disappointments with Austria and France, respectively. Nonetheless, their moods cannot go unexamined by their club coaches.
Pochettino is also preparing for the greater demands of the club's first Champions League campaign since 2010-11. Their group games will be played in the unfamiliar surroundings of Wembley Stadium as White Hart Lane in mid-redevelopment does not meet UEFA's requirements (playing in an open stadium in domestic competition will also be a strange experience for the players).
Speaking in May, Pochettino was not shy in stating how the second big area of improvement related to all this. He said:
I think that we need to improve our squad. This is very clear with me, our supporters, our players, our squad—I think we are all agreeing that we need to improve. It's a different level to play Champions League.
To compete in the Champions League, Premier League and the cups is very important. To have a very good balance we need to improve, we need to improve our squad.
He added: "The Champions League demands a lot of energy, more than the Europa League." With that in mind, he has already made two eye-catching new signings.
Victor Wanyama has been one of the Premier League's most consistent defensive midfielders in recent times. Pochettino brought him to Southampton three years ago, and upon recruiting him to Tottenham described him as "a perfect player for us."
"He's a very strong midfielder who is a holding midfielder but can play free and can play very well with the ball," Pochettino told Spurs' website, stressing the Kenyan's imposing physicality. "He's a powerful player and I think it’s a good opportunity for us to add a player that can help us improve our squad."
Though it manifested in an ugly fashion against Chelsea in May, Tottenham's toughness on the pitch was one of their best qualities. Wanyama will bring more to a midfield already boasting formidable competitors such as Dembele and Dier.
The other arrival is striker Vincent Janssen from AZ Alkmaar.
Having relied so heavily on Kane last season, strengthening the forward department was a must. Unlike Wanyama, Janssen is not proven in the Premier League, but his 27 goals last season is coupled with an industrious style that appealed to Pochettino.
Before the Newcastle game, the Spurs manager said: "When you analyse the squad you need to add not only in the football side, [but] the human profile." He again brought up his preference for young players willing to learn and work in a high-intensity system.
"He has a profile that fits perfectly for us," Pochettino told Tottenham's website about Janssen. "He has quality in the box and he's a striker that likes to fight and work for the team."
Powerful Wanyama, the fighting Janssen—Spurs appear to be gearing up for the kind of battles that will make those last time out look comparatively quaint.
Beyond the core of the team, who Pochettino decides to keep around to join them will be fascinating to see.
No senior player has departed north London yet this summer. With the pre-season games so far played behind closed doors (a 1-0 loss to Fulham and a 3-1 win over Nottingham Forest) we have little idea of how players working for their futures—the likes of Tom Carroll, Chadli, Ryan Mason and Alex Pritchard—are doing.
We will get our first look next week when Tottenham face Juventus and Atletico Madrid in the International Champions Cup in Australia.
"It's now about being ready to compete because it's always important to start well," Pochettino told Tottenham's official website in June. "We're in the middle of the summer and it's a moment to do our homework so we start pre-season clear with the squad and the players are focused on the start of the season."
Tottenham's highest league finish since 1990 was a considerable achievement for the team in Pochettino's second year. To achieve greater things, faces new and old are getting ready for a year that will demand even more from them.
Quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.