Coincidence? Maybe. But you can easily put two and two together after Ralf Rangnick's little warning in midweek and get an answer that won't be to the liking of Paul Pogba...
Again, the timing was... ahem, interesting. Rangnick's very clear, very concise comments on Pogba and his future with Manchester United coming barely hours after the player's agent, Mino Raiola, had granted a lengthy interview with Sport1. That is, Sport1 of Germany... Rangnick's Germany.
This time there was no personal attack on United's manager. But Raiola did decide to raise Pogba's future. Pair him with Bayern Munich. And in the recording, dig out United when insisting another client, Erling Haaland, was basically too good for them.
Had United's manager caught wind of Raiola's words? Had someone from Sport1 tipped him off? Maybe. Perhaps. But it is curious that within hours of Raiola putting his client's name back in the media mix that Rangnick is going into detail - for the first time - on his thoughts of the Frenchman and his contract situation.
“I wouldn't say he is not worth keeping," began United's caretaker manager, "but players need to want to stay and play for the club.
“If a player doesn't want to play for a club like Manchester United, even in the long term, I don't think it makes sense to convince him to change his mind."
Last week, we spoke about the legacy of Rangnick's predecessor, particularly how Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had brought a sense of a manager shaping his approach to meet the demands and traditions of United. And after listening to some close to Rangnick, we concluded that the veteran's personality meshed nicely with what Solskjaer had sought to establish in his time in charge.
But days later, the German went a step further. Pogba - and to a greater extent Raiola - was always the achilles heel in Solskjaer's management. What was said behind closed doors should stay there. But the Norwegian was never as stark as Rangnick was last week. Today's United manager was clear: no player is bigger than the club. And for a club of United's size and status, no player deserves indulging in order to convince him to stay. In speaking about Pogba, Rangnick made it clear the touchy-feely approach of Solskjaer towards the No6 was over. Indeed, we're hearing just as Rangnick was preparing his response to Raiola's comments, he was also questioning those around him at Carrington why Pogba was in Dubai doing his recovery. The manager baffled that just when United are fighting to snap their slump, a senior teammate is sunning himself on the other side of the world. A complaint this column leveled at United's management and Pogba last season.
And in Rangnick's reaction there was more than a hint the special treatment ends here and now. Indeed beyond the player, there was also some chastising for his higher ups: “This is such a massive club, with fantastic support, I don't think anyone at the club should try to convince a player to stay."
A message for the departing Ed Woodward? For the vice-chairman's expected replacement, Richard Arnold? For the board? The staff? Take your guess. Though it must be said, there was no bombshell in Rangnick's statement. What he said in public last week was much the same as he offered Woodward and John Murtough, the club's technical director, during their lengthy job interview last month.
And there was more. At least for those of us on the outside looking in. For Pogba, Rangnick's final comments could mean less: Less minutes. Less involvement. Where Solskjaer always offered Pogba the carrot. Always insisting United were a better team with an in-form Pogba in the XI. Rangnick offered the midfielder nothing. And certainly no guarantees: “Let's have him come back, get fully fit and training with the team, then we will see where we stand."
Hardly bullish. Hardly enthusiastic. He might as well have been speaking to a young free agent on trial. And it's words and an attitude which would've served Solskjaer well over his almost three years working with Pogba.
Rangnick has effectively set out his stall here. Not just with Pogba. But also with those whom have indulged him during the Jose Mourinho and Ole eras. The club is bigger than that. It is better than that. And if the player and his agent are happier running down the club in public - just as Raiola did last week - they both know what they can do.
Again, this column was skeptical about Rangnick's appointment a fortnight ago. But he's armoured himself with his own men (the arrival of Helmut Gross particularly fascinating). He's found a way to get the team winning again. And in his comments about Pogba, he's drawn a line in the sand regarding how he expects the players and those closest to them to value what it means to be part of this institution.
And let's face it, there are no coincidences. Raiola did Rangnick a favour. His petty, unnecessary jibe was all United's new manager needed to send a warning to both agent and client about how things are changing at Manchester United.