Jack Wilshere's comeback helped quieten dissent at Arsenal, but frustrations will return if Arsene Wenger's side fail to reach the quarter-finals of the League Cup at Reading today.
Wilshere had been scheduled to make his return after a 17-month injury absence at the Madejski Stadium but, having unexpectedly started in the 1-0 home victory over Queens Park Rangers on Saturday, he will be rested.
Wenger said: "After a game like that, I will certainly not play him on Tuesday. Will I play him [at Manchester United] next week? I don't know."
Wilshere's withdrawal will be just one of several changes as Wenger rotates his squad.
Yet despite the fact the line-up will bear only a passing resemblance to the side that faced QPR, Arsenal's continuing seven-season trophy drought means that expectations remain high.
The League Cup was fifth in the list of five targets identified by Wenger at the club's rancorous annual general meeting last week, trailing behind the Premier League, the Champions League, qualifying for the Champions League and the FA Cup. But for a club that is desperate to regain the winning habit, no competition is treated lightly.