Jack Harrison has explained how he walked away from Manchester United's academy to move to the US before returning to sign for Manchester City.
Harrison is currently on loan at Leeds United for the third successive season and is widely expected to make a move to Elland Road permanent next summer.
However, it was United that secured Harrison's signature at the age of eight and it was the now-23-year-old's decision to leave Old Trafford after what he described as a 'sliding doors moment' when speaking to his mum.
The winger left United for a scholarship in the US, where he worked under Patrick Vieira and Frank Lampard after signing for New York City before eventually moving back to England with City.
"At the age of eight, I signed for Manchester United," Harrison told BBC Sport.
"We'd always see the first-team players and to be in the place they were training was so cool.
"When I was 12 years old, my mum introduced the idea of these football scholarships in the US. She was like 'what do you think?' and immediately I said 'no, I don't want to do it'.
"The only thing I thought about was making it to the first-team. I didn't think about anything else.
"In the academy, you have a squad photo of each age group. My mum showed me a photo and said 'do you recognise any of them' and I said 'no'.
"There wasn't any that I knew of. She said 'All these lads have been in the academy and where are they now?'.
"For me, that really hit me. She looked at me and said 'just because you're here, doesn't mean you'll make it to the first-team'. That was my sliding doors moment.
"To walk out the door and leave United was where my story began.
"Going to the US was a great opportunity to get a good education and become more well-rounded. When I went to University, MLS teams started to notice me.
"Even though I was playing in the US, I still had the aspiration of playing in the Premier League.
"After two seasons in the MLS, there was a lot of interest in the UK. Before I knew it, I signed a contract with Man City.
"I hadn't heard anything about Marcelo Bielsa or his coaching style but I soon learnt his nickname 'El Loco', the crazy one.
"Leeds United were out of the Premier League for 16 years and Marcelo was brought to get them back to the promised land. He has this reputation for making his player work very hard.
"His methods are quite unorthodox but they get results and we know as a team it's good for us.
"The day we won everything was crazy. There was champagne thrown and chairs everywhere, it was a really nice moment for me, almost a moment of relief.
"The one thing I'm most proud of is taking the step to leave Manchester United academy. There was a lot of time throughout my career where I doubted myself and whether I could achieve my dream of playing in the Premier League.
"I went on this crazy journey and the path I chose prepared me for this moment."
