I don't think anyone expected us to last the distance last year but to be top of the league for so long - having just about scraped into the top 4 the previous two seasons - showed clear progress. And, of course, we won the FA Cup which got the 'not winning trophies' monkey off our back.
There was clear progress last year compared with the previous one (which is the only sensible comparison). The question is have we built on that. We seemed to be making some good signings in the summer but right now we don't look any better than last year, so far we're looking worse. It's early yet though, Saturday's performance encouraged me so let's see where we are around Christmas, that's usually when you get a better idea of how you're doing.