If Inter Milan's slow but promising start to life under Frank de Boer says anything, it's that the Nerazzurri are a work in progress, pure and simple. And if many of us saw the 2-1 victory over Juventus as a sign of things to come, the 2-1 loss to Roma last weekend showed that Inter are perfectly capable of dropping many points along the way if certain issues aren't addressed.
In this quarterly review, ESPN FC takes a look at this summer's signings and analyses what they've brought to the table so far.
Success story
There are two ways of answering this one. The quick option is to name Antonio Candreva as the newcomer who has impressed the most so far. The right-winger leads Serie A with his three assists (tied with five others) and has fans in raptures with his never-say-die attitude.
And to think that things could have turned very sour for the former Lazio man, with expectations set sky-high by his €22 million price tag and his performance at Euro 2016, and with his main backer -- former manager Roberto Mancini -- leaving the club 12 days before the start of the season.
Candreva has easily outplayed Ivan Perisic, and hasn't missed a league start since being benched against Palermo on Aug. 28. As soon as he came on, the Italy international turned the game on its head, assisting Icardi and coming close himself.
Then again, this merely makes Candreva the best signing for now. In the longer term, his age (he turns 30 in February) will make galloping down the wing more difficult, while 28-year-old Ever Banega (who came on a free), and Joao Mario (23) won't have to sprint like dervishes in the middle of the park.
As great as Candreva has been (he's 19th in Serie A in shots per game and 13th in crosses, according to WhoScored), good wingers are a dime a dozen in European football, while quality centre-midfielders like Banega and Mario are like buses; you spend years making do with Zdravko Kuzmanovic, only for two high-calibre talents to suddenly show up at the same time.
Without trying to sound hyperbolic, watching this dynamic duo thread the ball around against Juventus was almost unreal, as if they'd suddenly fallen from the sky. If anyone will help this team make the leap forwards, it's them.
Room for improvement
It's hard to fault sporting direction Piero Ausilio's signings, at least so far. It would be unfair to pick on Caner Erkin -- who left the club before ever playing a game -- or the likes of Gabigol or Cristian Ansaldi, who have played too little to judge.
As promising as Ansaldi is, however, his age (30) and history of injury troubles, which most recently saw him sidelined for the start of the current campaign, do not swing in his favour. When he was eventually thrown in at the deep end against Roma, he struggled.
Moreover, Ansaldi was practically swapped for Diego Laxalt, a 23-year-old who, having never had a chance at Inter, impressed at Genoa last season. So far, he's banged in four goals and made six assists in his time on the coast, while Inter were forced to start Yuto Nagatomo on the left, only for him to be supplanted by youth-team hero Senna Miangue.
Rather than who the Nerazzurri have signed, then, it may be more apt to speak of who they haven't signed. Speaking of which ...
Early target for January
Though it's frankly excessive to expect a team to be completely rebuilt over three or four transfer windows, another central defender would have been nice. It is becoming apparent that Jeison Murillo will need time to mature into a reliable Serie A centre-back, and having Andrea Ranocchia as his only backup is frankly insufficient.
Another cheap stopper would go down nicely, as well as a full-back, with Davide Santon having to play on both flanks and Senna Miangue needing time to develop himself. This is not to say that the current setup is bad or bereft of potential, more that the Nerazzurri need an insurance policy if they are to compete for third place.
In some ways, it's a pity that someone like Andrea Belotti wasn't signed in the summer in order to keep Icardi under pressure. He probably wouldn't have proven to be all that expensive, relatively speaking, if you consider his current form and that Franco Vazquez, Roberto Soriano and Nicolas Sansone were all allowed to leave Calcio for sums below the €20m mark.