Patrick Kisnorbo headed to France determined to break new ground for Australian football.
Instead, he was brutally brought back down to earth.
Former Socceroo Kisnorbo was hailed as the first Australian to coach in a men's top-five league in Europe when appointed manager of then Ligue 1 club Troyes in November 2022.
But the dream opportunity instead turned into a nightmare, with Troyes plummeting into relegation amid a club-record 23-game winless streak.
As things soured, the fans turned on their coach in venomous fashion - and results forced the club's hand, with Kisnorbo sacked last November after winning three of 40 games in charge.
"I didn't want to just survive," he told AAP.
"I wanted to play a brand of football where they go wild, and I wanted to show the people from Troyes the great talent we have."
Kisnorbo takes pride in the young players who have since gone on to make big club moves - especially new Tottenham signing Wilson Odobert.
But his major regret is the lack of experienced players at his disposal - partly a remit from the development-focused City Football Group.
"I was very fortunate and very privileged to get that opportunity," he said.
"In saying that, if there was a little bit more experience, I think things would have been a little bit different.
"At one stage, our team was younger than the NPL teams for Victory and City. That's how young we were."
Kisnorbo spent six months in the football wilderness before joining Melbourne Victory on a three-year deal in June.
"I spent a lot of time in France alone," he said of his time with Troyes.
"It was that time (afterwards) that I needed to spend time with my family, because I didn't see them a lot.
"So you reflect and you look at things. Could you have done things better? It's a learning period and that's all I did, to be honest.
"It was great having that time off and reflecting and being a family man. It was a time of my life I've never experienced before, ever."
If the common adage that you're not a real manager until you've been sacked holds true, then Kisnorbo feels part of the club now.
"You don't realise until it's happened to you, yeah?" he said.
"At the start, that's a tough one to take. But also, you learn from the hardest times, right?
"If that happened again, who knows if I were to learn in a better or different way.
"But what I know is I've got another opportunity to go again."
Kisnorbo knows he was a contentious appointment at Victory.
A former Melbourne City captain before becoming their history-making coach, the 43-year-old was once Victory's antagonist.
So why should Victory fans back him?
"I wear my heart on my sleeve," he said.
"It doesn't matter where I am or who I'm coaching for, I want to do the best that I can. I've always been like that. Hopefully the people see that.
"The fans have high standards, and they have expectations, and so do we. But my expectation, first and foremost, is hard work."
Kisnorbo has already taken an aggressive, attacking Victory to Saturday's Australia Cup semi-final against Adelaide United.
He knows the proud club expects trophies - and he won't change a thing to deliver them.
"You evolve as a coach and you evolve in certain things, but at the end of the day, a wheel is still round and nothing changes," he said.
"The demands are high, and I won't change it for nobody, and that's what I expect here."
