Cristiano Ronaldo sealed his fairytale return to Manchester United less than a year ago, but the Portuguese megastar is poised to wrap up a speedy exit from Old Trafford in the coming weeks.
The 37-year-old dropped a bombshell on Erik ten Hag when he revealed that he wants to quit the club this summer in the wake of their disastrous Premier League campaign.
The wantaway veteran has become somewhat of a polarising figure since returning to the Theatre of Dreams; he topped United's scoring charts with 24 goals last season, but the club have massively regressed with Ronaldo leading the line over the past 12 months. Whether you agree with the criticism the ex- Juventus man has received or not, it seems inevitable that United will lose their leading marksmen in the coming weeks - and their biggest scapegoat.
Ronaldo's shock arrival last summer to come from nowhere, and it also overshadowed the arrival of one of United's biggest ever acquisitions. Jadon Sancho finally arrived at Old Trafford to put an end to one of the most draining transfer sagas in recent memory - but Ronaldo quickly nudged the £73million man out of the spotlight.
With hindsight, that deflection probably served Sancho well. The 22-year-old endured a difficult maiden season in red and failed to live up to expectations. However, Sancho managed to escape major criticism last term despite the fact he mustered just five goals and three assists; possibly because so much scrutiny was thrust upon Ronaldo.
But with the striker now seemingly on the way out, Sancho will have nowhere to hide if he cannot start to show the type of form that convinced United to shell out such an astronomical sum on a consistent basis. The onus is on him to step up this year - because United certainly need him to start delivering the goods.
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Ten Hag simply does not have the funds available to address all of the issues in his beleaguered squad right now. That means the chances of the Dutchman revamping his attacking options properly in the coming weeks are slim; even if Ronaldo is offered an escape route from his Old Trafford nightmare.
That means that more of a burden will be placed on stars like Sancho, who was one of the most prolific forwards in European football during his time with Borussia Dortmund.
With that in mind, it's time for Sancho to remind everybody just why Manchester United relentlessly pursued his signature for well over a year.
The winger was supposed to be Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's marquee signing before Ronaldo arrived on the scene. And now that Ronaldo is on the cusp of sealing his swift exit, Sancho has to make the most of his opportunity to make amends for his nightmare start to life at the Theatre of Dreams and become United's main man next year.
