As Manchester United continue down to chop and change managers, one of their exes could well be looking smug once Ralf Rangnick gets his feet under the table at Old Trafford.
Having now been the Red Devils' former manager for longer than he was in charge of the club, Jose Mourinho looks set to be proven right in one of his many hotly-debated stances during his two-and-a-half-year spell in Manchester.
'The Special One' wanted to axe the highly-rated Anthony Martial on multiple occasions during his ill-fated tenure, but was blocked by co-chairman Joel Glazer.
And now, three years on from his sacking, Rangnick's arrival appears to spell the end for the once £50million man, signed in 2015 by Louis van Gaal with an ambitious Ballon d'Or clause in his contract.
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Having clocked up just 357 minutes of football this season, the 25-year-old is hardly the German coach's type; a forward willing to bust a gut, hassle defences with tenacity and contribute both ways.
Reports in Spain suggest that Barcelona are after Martial as a back-up option to Manchester City's Ferran Torres.
It follows Mirror Football's understanding that Rangnick's appointment improves belief at Old Trafford that they can win the race for Borussia Dortmund sensation Erling Haaland.
Allegedly believing the Martial was United's answer to Brazilian legend Pele, Glazer prevented Mourinho from selling the starlet twice.
The Portuguese only took a year to figure out that the young Frenchman was not going to be part of his plans to bring the glory days back to Old Trafford, reportedly hoping for a sale in 2017 and again in 2018.
Unwilling to work hard in his defensive duties, Martial was often anonymous in matches under Mourinho - much like his showings towards the latter end of Solskjaer's reign.
The former United manager's most damning assessment came following a 1-0 defeat to newly-promoted Brighton in May 2018, when he opted to rest Romelu Lukaku and start the France international alongside Marcus Rashford up front.
"For 10 months I get asked 'why always Lukaku? Why always Lukaku? Why always this player?' Mourinho lamented post-match.
"'That guy doesn’t have a chance to start, the other one is one the bench.' You know why now."
And a few months later in pre-season, Martial's decision to head back to Paris for his birth of his second child annoyed Mourinho, who told MUTV: "He has the baby and after the baby is born, beautiful baby, full of health, thank god.
"He should be here and he is not here. Now we have Real Madrid and after that we have Bayern Munich, and that is our start."
The personal jibe came five months prior to the former Chelsea and Inter Milan boss' sacking, and Martial opened up on how the public criticism affected him in February 2020.
"It’s true that I’d have preferred it if he’d told me directly, there’s no need to say it in front of everybody," he admitted to RMC Sport.
"After that, you definitely want to prove him wrong. He didn't start me during the first few games and each time I came on, I scored.
"In the end, he told me: 'You see, now you understand what I wanted'. It can get to you. You just want to show him you deserve to be on the pitch."
Martial's determination to prove Mourinho wrong hinted at his future decisions and why he remains a Red Devils player to this day.
On transfer deadline day back in August, he reportedly rejected a loan offer to join Lyon in a bid to stake his claim under Solskjaer, whose patience wore thin after one too many under-par performances.
That was after the signings of Cristiano Ronaldo and Jadon Sancho, who have taken up a large portion of minutes in the front line this term alongside Rashford, Mason Greenwood, and Edinson Cavani.
And Martial has been warned about upping his game, with ex-United striker Dwight Yorke challenging him to up his game earlier in what has been another lacklustre campaign.
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"When you play for this club and you’re not doing the business and your form dips for whatever reason you’re going to be under scrutiny," Yorke stated in an interview with Goal. "He’s got to buckle down really if he has a future at this football club.
"He’s undoubtedly got immense talent and all the attributes we like to see in an attacking player and there’s no question he can be that vital player for us but at the moment he’s not in the squad and he’s got to find a way to get back into the team."
Fortunately for Martial, he will have a least a month to knuckle down under Rangnick before the January transfer.
But after five up and down years in Manchester, all of the signs point towards Mourinho being proven right.
