Philippe Coutinho's loan switch to Aston Villa left Liverpool supporters divided last month.
For some, this transfer was a sign of the times and hammered home how far the Brazilian had fallen since his £142million Anfield exit in 2018.
On the other side of the argument were those wishing the 29-year-old well and hoping this could be the move to get his career back on track.
Steven Gerrard will have played a major role in his decision to swap Barcelona for Birmingham but, even so, this was an eye-opening change of clubs that few could have predicted only months earlier.
It was nine years ago today that Coutinho's Liverpool journey began, coming on as a late substitute in a home defeat to West Brom, which marked the beginning of a memorable career at the club.
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So often an influential midfield figure for the Reds, he opened his goalscoring account a week after his brief came against the Baggies by bagging in a 5-0 home victory over Swansea City.
Coutinho reached the peak of his powers in his final season at the club, producing 20 goal contributions in 20 appearances for the Reds during the 2017/18 campaign - form that he was unable to replicate at Camp Nou.
After being denied a summer move in 2017 despite handing in a transfer request, the attacking midfielder finally got his way in January 2018 as Klopp's side decide to cash in on their prized asset.
Reds fans had already watched Luis Suarez maintain his frightening standards at Barcelona after an Anfield exit and the feeling was Coutinho was well on his way to mirroring the career path of the prolific Uruguayan.
The early signs were promising as he ended the campaign strongly in LaLiga, but the following campaign ended in devastating fashion as the Blaugrana suffered a humbling Champions League exit at the hands of Liverpool and Copy del Rey final defeat to Valencia.
Coutinho's best spell since then arrived, rather ironically, during a season-long loan at Bayern Munich which saw him earn an emphatic 8-2 victory over his parent club en route to European glory.
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Viewed as an overpriced outcast ever since returning to Barcelona, it's clear that a fresh start was required sooner rather than later.
That has arrived in the form of reuniting with former Liverpool team-mate Gerrard at Aston Villa, which has seen the Samba star recapture his magic.
Scoring and providing an assist on his debut for the West Midlands side, against Manchester United of all opponents, was quite the way to issue a reminder of his talent.
Continuing his impressive start to life at Villa Park, Coutinho was at the heart of things once more on Wednesday as he bagged a goal and two assists versus Leeds United.
This was Coutinho back to enjoying his football and terrorising defences, and didn't Gerrard know it.
"He’s certainly getting close to where he was when the world was speaking about him," said the Liverpool legend in a warning to rivals after the match.
"Some of his creativity, two assists, his finish tonight...how close he puts it to the post.
"His vision and his awareness. It was vintage Philippe Coutinho.
"If you don't like watching Philippe Coutinho then you should stop watching football because that (performance) was absolutely beautiful.
“He seems happy, we have given the stage to go and enjoy his football again."
His acrimonious Liverpool departure will not be forgiven by many, but there is a sense of nostalgia attached with Gerrard reviving the career of a one-time Kop favourite.
Coutinho saw his reputation dragged through the mud after falling out of favour in Spain, but the early signs suggest he is ready to write a new chapter in his career.
And the rest of the Premier League have been warned.
