Hannibal Mejbri admitted he found it 'difficult' to understand his Manchester United team-mates' Mancunian accents in 2019.
It's something he could have joked about with Paul Pogba when the pair were introduced that summer. Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester City, Barcelona and Bayern Munich were interested in signing Hannibal from Monaco two years ago but United won the race.
They flexed their muscles to land Hannibal's signature and the club certainly doesn't make such advances for ordinary players.
John Murtough, now director of football at Old Trafford, provided the youngster with a trip to Norway to watch United's July 2019 friendly against Kristiansund. Hannibal took the match in and met Pogba. He was sold on the club.
United paid an initial €5m to sign Hannibal from Monaco in 2019 - that was a sizeable transfer fee for someone who was still only 16 - and he quickly settled in. Three years later and Ralf Rangnick has confirmed he's in his first team plans.
This is the story of the boy that was shaped in Paris, with Tunisia in his blood.
Clairefontaine academy is located 30 miles outside of Paris. Its surrounded by oak trees, a vast, sprawling green landscape and inside the grounds is the 17th-century Montjoye castle. It is a secluded getaway, but it's not a location for the holidaymaker.
On the meticulously kept lawn at the front of the academy complex sits a giant replica of the World Cup trophy. It is the first giveaway yet a rather obvious one. The French Football Federation opened Clairefontaine in 1988 and it has since become of the best-known football academies in the world. Only the most gifted players in France are welcomed through its doors.
France's national side might train at Clairefontaine, but the complex is so much more than that. It is a national training centre where the goal is developing talent, with teenagers training at the Clairefontaine base between the age of 13 and 15.
The graduates from Clairefontaine include Thierry Henry, Nicolas Anelka, Louis Saha and William Gallas. It is also where Manchester United's Hannibal trained during the week as a teenager before playing for Paris FC, where he spent his weekends.
Hannibal spent eight years playing for Paris FC and his development was carefully overseen by coach Reda Bekhtu.
"I had Hannibal for several seasons and I was his coach in the U9s and U11s," Bekhtu told the Manchester Evening News.
"By being in charge of the football school and the Paris FC pre-training, I followed him regularly through training. My first impression of Hannibal as a coach was that he was a player gifted with intelligence.
"He had very good technique from an early age it was clear he had a lot of talent. He was a player with a lot of character and confidence, which sometimes came across as arrogance with opponents, but that was wrong. They didn’t know him personally.
"Hannibal was always joking, he had great humour and he liked to make others laugh."
While Hannibal was popular with his peers and was loved among his teammates for his humour, there was actually another side to him and his personality, as Bekhtu explained. "He was also very serious at times, diligent and hard-working," Bekhtu added.
"What impressed me most about him was his determination and his attitude. He also had charisma and confidence. He was very skilled technically on the ball and he had great speed in his movements.
"He was a very technical player, he had the style of Redondo, the Argentinian midfielder of Real Madrid, with David Luiz's hair.
"He had such elegance on the ball, he dribbled with ease and with a lot of character."
Hannibal had the talent and Bekhtu admits that the youngster had always made it clear that 'it was his dream' to become a professional footballer, however, that dream is shared by millions around the world and only the few make it a reality.
There were obstacles for Hannibal to overcome, but Paris FC already had their success stories to inspire the midfielder.
Gabriel Obertan, who played for United for two years, and Mamadou Sakho had forged careers after playing in Paris FC's academy. The pathway was there and Bekhtu and his colleagues had the know-how to develop the raw talent in front of them.
Those at Paris FC hoped Hannibal was next. "Through Paris FC's coaches, there was quality training available for Hannibal, which greatly contributed to his evolution. We provided a solid training base, so he could progress in a good environment," Bekhtu added.
Although the environment that Paris FC had created for Hannibal was giving him every chance to make it on the pitch, a healthy personal life is viewed as equally as important in the development of young footballers. There is balance required.
Hannibal needed a support network and he was lucky enough to have it with his family. "His family have really good values and they have done everything to help Hannibal succeed," Bekhtu explained.
"They were very involved in the life of the club when I was there and they helped create an environment that was conducive to his development. He really owes them a lot."
As Hannibal entered his teenage years, the physical demands of football began to change. While he could rely on his exceptional technical ability to keep pace with his more precocious peers, regular football at Clairefontaine would help his physique.
"Hannibal was at Clairefontaine during the week, the best pre-training centre in France located in the heart of France’s senior team, and he played for Paris FC at the weekends until the U14s or U15s," Bekhtu recalled.
"That really helped him develop and adapt to the physical demands of football growing up. It was necessary to progress.
"Hannibal played in different attacking positions and in midfield, which is his preferred position. He had a vision of play and technical ease, which allowed him to excel in the centre of the pitch."
Hannibal was certainly excelling and in 2017 he ended his eight-year association with Paris FC. Hannibal had a short spell with Boulogne-Billancourt before moving to Monaco in 2018. His reputation was growing. The word on Hannibal had travelled.
United, Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester City, Barcelona and Bayern Munich were all tracking Hannibal and the youngster, aged 16-years-old in 2019, had been omitted from Monaco's youth squads after a contract dispute. United knew they needed to act.
After months of talks, United made a breakthrough. Hannibal was given special treatment - Murtough arranged for him to watch the first team during pre-season - to persuade him that moving to Manchester was the right choice for him and it worked.
Hannibal signed for United in the summer of 2019 and it didn't surprise Bekhtu, who was delighted for his former pupil.
"I wasn’t surprised that he went to Manchester," admitted Bekhtu. "It was a logical progression and he always wanted to play at the top level from a young age. He was always followed by the biggest clubs.
"He has the qualities to evolve in the Premier League, he just needs to grow physically to meet the workload and as soon as he enjoys more playing time he will be able to show the full extent of his talent."
Hannibal made his full United debut on the final day of last season against Wolves. That promised a potential breakthrough to the first team for the youngster this term, but he sustained an injury in September, which forced him to be sidelined for two months.
Hannibal returned from injury in November and was called up to Tunisia's national team for the Arab Cup soon after. Hannibal impressed at that tournament, helping his side get to the final, and his mature displays were followed at United.
It's understood that Hannibal had the opportunity to take a holiday after the Arab Cup before he joined Tunisia again at the Africa Cup of Nations, but he chose to return to Manchester in order to train with the senior squad and catch the eye of Rangnick.
That dedication has already paid dividends as Hannibal will play his part at United for the remainder of the season. Hannibal has succeeded in catching Rangnick's eye and he's now in the position to attempt to force himself into the German's starting XI.
That chapter of his story is yet to be written, but for Bekhtu, he already has good reason to be 'really proud' of Hannibal.
"I am just really proud of him because I know that he sacrificed a lot of things to get where he is," Bekhtu said.
"To help his development was our duty at Paris FC, but what he's gone on to do today makes me so satisfied and happy. I just wish him lots of good things and great sporting success in the future. I hope he wins lots of titles and becomes a real top player.
"Afterwards, it is God who decides and Hannibal can tell him Long Live Tazerka."
Tazerka is a small coastal town in Northern Tunisia and Bekhtu made it clear Hannibal hasn't forgotten his roots.
Hannibal might have been shaped in Paris, but he has Tunisia in his blood and United in his thoughts.
