Morgan Schneiderlin has admitted that he deeply regrets asking to leave Manchester United.
The 32-year-old joined the Red Devils from Southampton in July 2015 but would depart for Everton just 18 months later - an all-too-hasty decision, according to Schneiderlin.
Having endured a difficult first season under Louis van Gaal, the midfielder found himself heavily out of favour when Jose Mourinho took over the following term.
Concerned over his future halfway though the campaign, Schneiderlin pulled the plug and moved to Merseyside.
" I learned a lot from my departure from Manchester United. I had played 40 matches the previous season with Manchester," L'Equipe quote the Frenchman as saying, via Sport Witness.
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"When I come back from the Euros, I take ten days off and I play very little for three, four months. Then, I have Ronald Koeman and Everton who are pushing hard to get me, every day, from October.
"I will remember it all my life: I should have played against Liverpool, starter, and the coach [Mourinho] comes to see me. He tells me he doesn't feel me inside the group.
"I tell him that indeed, with what has happened in the last three months, I am not in it and I want to go to Everton. I regretted it very quickly."
While Schneiderlin thought he had made the right call at the time, his decision prompted his downfall in the Premier League - unlike a teammate at United who stuck around.
"Even if it went very well at Everton, when you play for Manchester United, when you're at a club like that, it's not for a moment of doubt that you have to question everything," he added.
"Look at Ander Herrera : the first year I arrived, he was on the bench; he persevered, and today he is at PSG."
Schneiderlin's time at Goodison Park was largely underwhelming, going down as one of many players who failed to make the grade on Merseyside under multiple managers.
But the ex- France international is now enjoying a solid if unspectacular tenure at Nice, who he signed for in June 2020 and has now reached the landmark of 50 appearances.
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Tipped to leave the Ligue 1 high-flyers last summer, he was determined not to make the same mistake again and instead has knuckled down under acclaimed coach Christophe Galtier.
Schneiderlin's career began with French side Strasbourg before seven years across the channel with Southampton, where he helped the club earn promotion to the top flight.
Having won the FA Cup on Van Gaal's final bow, another career highlight came weeks later, as he was called up to France's squad for Euro 2016 after former Chelsea star Lassana Diarra suffered an injury.