Manchester United's director of football John Murtough was left red-faced this summer after one of his closest confidants Nemanja Matic elected to wave goodbye to the club.
The Serbian, 34, spent five years at Old Trafford after arriving from Premier League rivals Chelsea in the summer of 2017 for a fee of £40m.
He went on to make 189 appearances for the Red Devils in all and was one of the more senior players in the United dressing room during his time at the club and appeared to be one of the connections between the hierarchy and the playing staff.
As per The Times, Matic held 'regular meetings' with Murtough - appointed as the club's football director in March 2021 - to point out the various problems at Old Trafford over the past few years.
The Serbian reportedly indicated various things wrong at the club but admitted that he felt 'helpless' to stop a rot that had taken a deep hold under at first Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and then Ralf Rangnick.
As such, it was clear that Murtough valued the Serbian midfielder highly to gather his opinions of the previous mire that the side previously found themselves in.
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However, he was then left without the advice of the midfielder as he pulled a swift U-turn on the Red Devils by announcing his intention to leave the club this summer and in the end sealed a reunion with former United boss Jose Mourinho at AS Roma.
Whether the problems that Matic described previously are still present at Old Trafford under new manager Erik ten Hag remains to be seen but Murtough has already been full of praise for the Dutchman and how he has established an improved culture at the club.
Speaking to the Red Devils' official website, he said: "After a thorough search and due diligence process, it was clear to us that Erik was the strongest candidate, based on his outstanding coaching record, his commitment to the proactive, attacking football we want to play, and the vision and ambition he showed for the role.
"There is still a long way to go, but we have already seen, during his first four months in charge, an increased unity, focus and drive that bodes well for the future."
In the meantime, Matic has endured a bright start to life with Roma since his summer switch to the Stadio Olimpico. He has appeared in every game so far for the Serie A giants - only two of those outings coming as a substitute.
The Serbian only penned a deal until the end of the current season though so it remains to be seen whether he elects to stay with Roma beyond that.
