Recent results against West Ham, for Tottenham managers, have been telling indicators of the success of their respective regimes.
Away at Upton Park in 2013, Andre Villas-Boas' side were spectacular yet far from convincing, thanks to a last minute strike from Gareth Bale.
The following season, his side devoid of confidence and creativity, were stunned by the same side at White Hart Lane 3-0, with starlet Ravel Morrison capturing the imagination of West Ham fans with a solo goal that silenced the home fans.
Two slapdash defeats under Tim Sherwood were typical of his laissez-faire, 'my squad is rubbish' regime, in which his win percentage was of course "second to none."
More interesting are Mauricio Pochettino's two encounters with West Ham as Spurs manager. His first Premier League game, in fact, came against the Irons, which Spurs won courtesy of a plucky goal in stoppage time from Eric Dier, who was making his Tottenham Hotspur debut that afternoon.
Similar luck was displayed as Spurs came back from two goals down to salvage a draw in February, thanks to the man of the moment Harry Kane, who won the penalty from which he scored the rebound to equalise in the 95th minute.
Again Spurs were plucky. They were spirited also. Yet even Mauricio Pochettino declared that they must improve. Ultimately, this game started a slide which took Spurs out of the race to get Champions League football.
A more mature side
A season on and Spurs look reinvigorated. Defensively they are one of the most improved teams in Europe. They've gone from being one of the most casual defensive units to being one of the tightest. This is thanks to not only the addition of the more composed Toby Alderweireld but also the resituating of Dier in midfield.
The rise of Alli and Dier
Dier's influence, alongside his 19-year-old partner-in-crime Dele Alli, has tightened up a previously lightweight midfield and the effect of the increased physicality and intensity was on display in Spurs' last game, the North London derby, which they came out of with a draw.
Perform similiarly and Spurs should defeat a West Ham side, who have been reinvigorated by new manager Slaven Bilic, who was appointed this summer. They miss Dimitri Payet, their talisman, who has been instrumental for them this term, but who picked up a serious injury earlier this month.
Spurs will hope to capitalise on this absence, and the manager in particular will be desperate for a convincing win to underline the progress of his youthful team. He has received a lot of praise this week following the England starts given to Dier and Alli, who marked his first Wembley start with a spectacular goal, sending the media into a frenzy over his performances. Despite the obvious talent of these players, it seems clear that it is thanks to Pochettino that they've been able to make the next step.
A side ready to challenge the top four
Pluckiness is not a trait any Argentinian would really want their team attributed to. More like, they would prefer a flamboyant, fierce and ruthless team, who exerts their authority over the opposition from minute one.
To prove that Spurs are moving towards becoming that sort of team, they must show it against West Ham this weekend. If they do so, they will send out a message that Spurs are ahead of their competition in pursuit of a fourth place finish.
West Ham should be considered one of Spurs' rivals for this spot, as thanks to a fantastic start under Bilic, they sit in sixth place, level with Spurs on 21 points, although Spurs do have a superior goal difference. Impressive victories against Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool have shown that they are not a side who will be fazed by their opposition's standing or the occasion.
Furthermore, it is vital for Spurs that they defeat the Hammers, as the following week they face Premier League Champions Chelsea, who despite enduring a difficult start to their season, will come ready to turn around their fortunes with a victory in a London derby. Spurs will be desperate to prevent this by repeating their antics of the first day of this calender year, when they defeated Jose Mourinho's side 5-3 at White Hart Lane.