Let's start with some honesty: Rangers are not a complete team, but they are a growing team. Over the next six games, if Danny Rohl's side are to prove themselves the country's best and win a title that seemed inconceivable the last time Jim Goodwin's men rolled up at Ibrox, we saw the blueprint of how that will be achieved on Saturday.
A squad that is deep and wide enough to provide a plethora of attacking answers, and a team starting to score, and yesterday create, at a title-winning level.
In mid-October, when United last visited Govan, Rohl had counted himself out of the running for this job as the club pursued Steven Gerrard and later Kevin Muscat. By the time the German was in situ, 13 points separated a Rangers side who had endured their worst start since the 1970s from the top of the league they summited yesterday with a 4-2 win.
For how long? Celtic and Hearts are both in action today, and Rohl won't know until he turns his phone back on at around 6.30 pm - a developing habit of his during the title race - whether Rangers will remain top by Monday. But no one is doubting that this league title is within reach.
Weaknesses remain: John Souttar continues to destabilise a defence that looks at ease when Nasser Djiga partners Manny Fernandez, with constant errors leading to goals, and the lack of a consistent goalscorer is an ever-present worry. Yet yesterday's win demonstrated that if Rangers do win the title, it will owe more to depth than to individuals, a depth that has helped Rangers score at a far higher rate since the close of the January window.
What's more, yesterday was the highest single-game xG Rangers have managed all season (3.27 xG). It was also the highest single-game open-play xG (3.02) of the season, on a day where set-pieces often got stuck at the front post.
For context, Rangers have only created an open-play xG above two on three occasions this season: during a 2-2 draw away at United, a 1-0 home win over Motherwell, and a 5-1 victory against Kilmarnock.
Eight different goalscorers struck eight goals across this win and the previous outing against Aberdeen. Before the close of the January window, Rohl's side were averaging 1.54 goals per 90. That total now sits at 2.88 across the subsequent eight games. Hearts, meanwhile, are recording 1 goal per 90, and Celtic 1.86, before a ball is kicked on Sunday.
A goal difference of +32 is four ahead of Hearts and ten ahead of Celtic. Given McInnes' side have won by a two-goal margin only three times since 1 November, that metric should continue to work in Rangers' favour.
Dundee United's forays forward were worrying in moments on Saturday, and they struck the post late on with a chance that would have tied the game 3-3. Fernandez was only rested here due to a heavy schedule of late and his international debut, though. His partnership with Djiga in recent weeks - surely restored for the final six matches - will help matters. Plainly, it must. Rangers have conceded two goals in each of the last four games Souttar has started.
Goals are up, and the load is being shared. Unlike against Aberdeen, it wasn't Mikey Moore who provided an edge, nor James Tavernier with his end product and delivery. This time it was Thelo Aasgaard offering an answer, Bojan Miovski offering a finishing touch from the bench, and Djeidi Gassama turning in his best performance in weeks.
Jayden Meghoma cannot match the levels of the injured Tuur Rommens, but - as he has been all season - the youngster was steady and solid. Andreas Skov Olsen, signed to secure this piece of silverware, continues to falter, but others around him are stepping up. Rohl hopes an injury sustained by Ryan Naderi, who was effective before the break, is not serious.
Dujon Sterling was arguably man of the match at right back, and the likes of Oliver Antman, Nedim Bajrami, and Mo Diomande didn't get on the pitch. Connor Barron only briefly saw action.
Youssef Chermiti continues to be an enigma, more likely to score under pressure in an Old Firm than through a one-on-one here. His fixtures - away at Parkhead and Tynecastle - are approaching fast.
For much of his first few months in the job, Rohl's team selections were dictated not by taste but by necessity. Danilo and Bajrami populated the starting XI when the German took Rangers to Tannadice in December. Now, following the January window, there is the luxury of tweaking the team with options in reserve.
It is important to counter this with the fact that, for a squad that has had such significant expenditure, this should be expected. Then again, this was a group that was inherited with confidence on the floor, one that needed rebuilding while winning games concurrently.
The day before the game, Rohl lined up his squad in two starting 11s in training and believed either could feasibly start against United. A slight overstatement? Perhaps. But he could not even have pretended to consider that when he arrived at Ibrox.
Going top for the first time in two years is a significant moment. And sure, questions remain. Can Rangers implement their game against Hearts and Celtic away from home, and score at the rate they've managed at Ibrox? Can they control the emotion and flow of matches?
Rohl, emphatically, said of his side's new position: "You cannot try to keep something, I think this is very crucial. Be on the front foot, and if we win six games, then we will have something at the end of the season. I'm really convinced."
When he suggested his team had promised themselves to go all out and win "nine cup finals" after their Scottish Cup exit at the hands of Celtic, it felt like tokenism. Not now. Down to the very last member of the squad, Rohl's Rangers are up for the fight.
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