Arsenal have appointed Mikel Arteta as their new head coach to leave a bitter taste in the mouths of the Manchester City hierarchy.
The Spaniard had previously been tipped as an in-house successor to Pep Guardiola after joining the club from the Gunners in 2016.
He left the Emirates Stadium having hung up his boots to learn under a manager who reshaped European football at Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
After three years at the Etihad campus, and with two Premier League titles under his belt, his is back in north London as a head coach in his own right.
It is an appointment that was pursued by Arsenal in a manner that has soured relations with City.
Guardiola's side claim they were not contacted over an approach for their former assistant manager.
They apparently found out the deal was done at the same time as fans when news broke that Arsenal had made it official themselves.
Whatever really happened behind the scenes, Arteta remains highly thought of in Manchester, which is what makes his appointment so exciting.
football.london spoke to Stuart Brennan at the Manchester Evening News to find out the City view on a managerial move that has ruffled feathers in the north west.
"Having seen Arsenal, they look like a team that needs a firefighter - an experienced manager who can turn things around quickly and then revamp the squad in summer.
"Arteta is a very good coach but that is not the same as being a good manager, so it would be a huge gamble for the Gunners
"It took Pep Guardiola the best part of his first season to start getting his messages through, and that was with players who had been hand-picked to fit perfectly into his system.
"Arteta might have to compromise his principles and just try to make them more solid, and get his big players pulling in the right direction.
"To try to impose Pep-style football principles on that current Arsenal squad would be asking for trouble.
"City fans would love the idea of their own Arteta-like appointment but Vincent Kompany is now steeped in Guardiola's philosophy and would inherit a squad he understands, playing a system he understands.
"Arteta harks back to the Wenger days but hs coaching principles are pure Guardiola.
"It is three years since he left Arsenal - he would be a much better fit for City."
