His debut season with Paris Saint-Germain is not over yet, but midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak's dream move has turned sour, and the Poland international looks to have little choice but to look elsewhere next campaign.
Following his reported €40 million move from Sevilla to sign a five-year contract at Parc des Princes the same summer as coach Unai Emery, big things were expected from the former Stade de Reims, FC Nantes and Girondins de Bordeaux destroyer. However, after a frustrating term that has seen as much action with the French champions' reserve side as with the seniors lately, it finally looks like Krychowiak's club situation is starting to affect his previously untouchable international role.
The 27-year-old was released from international duty on Wednesday because of what Poland national team doctor Jacek Jaroszewski diagnosed as a broken rib. He was sent back to Paris to recuperate.
Surely something that serious would have been picked up by PSG before Krychowiak even travelled to link up with his international teammates in Warsaw before heading to Montenegro for a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier, no?
The return of Les Parisiens' No. 4 to the French capital completes a bizarre international break that has seen the Polish press claim that the Ligue 1 giants wrote to the Polish Football Association (PZPN) and kit manufacturer Adidas to demand that club matters not be discussed by the player while on duty.
Sunday's qualifying clash with Montenegro in Podgorica will be the first World Cup or UEFA European Championsip qualifier Bialo-Czerwoni have played without Krychowiak since 2012.
If Robert Lewandowski is absolutely indispensable to Poland manager Adam Nawalka, the PSG man is not far behind.
Since Nawalka took over as coach back in 2013, Krychowiak has featured in almost every World Cup qualifier, Euro qualifier or Euro tournament match.
However, injury or not, the man from Gryfice's absence is symptomatic of his disastrous debut season in Paris. Nothing has gone right for him, and whether it was because of form or fitness -- sometimes both -- Krychowiak has found game time hard to come by.
Krychowiak was at an immediate disadvantage once Emery moved away from the attack-minded 4-2-3-1 formation he tried to implement upon his arrival. By moving back to the possession-based 4-3-3 system introduced by former coach Laurent Blanc, an emphasis was placed on the more technical midfielders.
Thiago Motta, Marco Verratti, Adrien Rabiot, Blaise Matuidi and even young Christopher Nkunku are all more gifted with the ball at their feet, and there was no space in the starting XI or even as a substitute for a player such as Krychowiak. The formidable Pole is effectively sixth in Emery's midfield pecking order now because of his style of play. A glaring error during the 2-2 Champions League group stage draw away at Arsenal did not help his cause, either.
However, that is part of his problem at Parc des Princes. Many looked at Krychowiak following Emery to Paris and assumed the Basque tactician had requested him. Instead, Krychowiak's well-documented friendship with PSG sporting director Olivier Letang looks to have secured him the move.
Right now, the Poland No. 10 does not appear to have much to thank his friend for after arguably the most difficult season of his career since he established himself with Reims.
Krychowiak is expected to miss the next three weeks through injury, but realistically, he will not feature much again this campaign -- if at all -- under Emery because he simply does not fit the system the French giants are playing and are likely to continue playing with the 45-year-old in charge.
Krychowiak remains an excellent player if you are looking for somebody in midfield to break up an opponent's attack and add bite in the middle -- hence his nickname of "the Butcher" -- but PSG require greater technical qualities on top of that.
Krychowiak does not offer the other characteristics, so a summer move away from Parc des Princes looks like a no-brainer at this moment.