Carlo Ancelotti has taken an apparent swipe at Everton in one of his first press conferences as Real Madrid manager.
It comes after the well-decorated Italian swapped life on Merseyside for Madrid this week in a cruel blow to the Toffees' ambitions.
Club owner Farhad Moshiri was left dumbstruck after a whirlwind 24 hours which has the club looking for a sixth manager in five years.
That is not what the 66-year-old had in mind when he took over in 2016, who has always yearned for stability at Everton.
And to further rub salt in the wounds, Ancelotti bluntly laid out his former club's ambitions against Real Madrid - angering a section of fans.
He said: “Each team has an objective. Success isn’t just winning trophies, success for a manager is to reach the objective that the club has.
"Everton doesn’t have the objective to win the Premier League, it has the objective to try and play in European football and we fought until the end."
Landing Ancelotti was heralded as a major coup for Everton but they are back to square one as they eye replacements.
Who should be the next Everton manager? Comment below.
Nuno Espirito Santo is in the driving seat to take over at Goodison Park after leaving Wolves at the end of the season.
Other names mentioned include Eddie Howe, Graham Potter and former Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez.
As for Ancelotti, his task at Real Madrid will involve a hefty summer of selling - with several players linked with moves away.
But he has insisted that Gareth Bale and Eden Hazard, two stars who could leave Los Blancos, have futures at the club.
“He has not played much in England,” Ancelotti said of Bale. “But he scored a lot of goals, he was very effective, especially in the final games when he played more regularly.
"I know Gareth well and if he has the motivation to try to play his best game he can have a great season, I have no doubt.
"Hazard is a top player. He had problems with injury and still hasn’t brought out the potential he has, but he will because he has the desire to do that.
“I haven’t spoken to the club about that yet. I know the squad well, I know the young players and the players coming back from loans. We have a lot of options.
"I want to assess everyone calmly. The first time I was here four young players from Castilla came in - Morata, Nacho, Casemiro and Jese - and they did very well.
"And Carvajal came in from Bayer Leverkusen. Thanks to the enthusiasm of the young players and the experience of the older players, we did well.
"If I remember correctly, without the players who were loaned out like Bale, Odegaard and Ceballos, Madrid reached the Champions League semi-finals and fought for the league title. So yes, definitely - we can compete”.
