Back in the 1980's they used to ask what have the Titanic and Lawrie McMenemy got in common ? The answer was they both should never have left Southampton ! Is Morgan Schneiderlin the latest in what is becoming a long line of ex players about who they are saying the same.
Since the great player exodus of the summer of 2014 it seems that once a player departs from St Mary's his career never quite reaches the same heights that it had with Saints.
Dejan Lovren is a figure of scorn, almost hatred at Liverpool, Rickie Lambert was always going to be a bit player at Anfield but he surely could not have foreseen how quickly his career would nosedive once leaving St Mary's and Adam Lallana although having his moments in a Liverpool shirt is yet to convince the Kop that he is going to become a Liverpool great. This season Nathaniel Clyne can't seem to recapture the consistency and form he showed last season in a Saints shirt.
Luke Shaw has had his flaws exposed at Old Trafford and although injury has delayed his progress, he has struggled, over at the Emirates Calum Chambers career path seems to be following that of Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade Chamberlain in that he is hardly a regular and his undoubted talent does not have the freedom to mature him into a truly great player as it might have at Southampton.
Sadly and i do mean this sincerely as Morgan Schneiderlin gave Saints great service and deserved his big move, the Frenchman's career at Old Trafford is far from flourishing and United's season seems to be deteriorating rapidly.
Ironically FC Midtjylland loom ominously over Schneiderlin's season as so far the low point for both Manchester United and Southampton in this season is a rainy night in Denmark with FCM beating both by a single goal.
But whereas Saints have used their defeat to stir them onwards and upwards, it looks like United's could drag them down, certainly the 800 United fans in Denmark were of that mind as the Telford Reds joined with the Guildford Reds in roundly condemning their team with a chant that could not be repeated on a family website such as this.
But from Morgan Schneiderlin's point of view it draws comparisons, not just with the cheap 1980's Titanic joke, but just where his career is going.
He was a 72nd minute substitute in Denmark so he perhaps could not be blamed as much as some, but the fact that he was on the bench and not on the field at a time when United need their best players is perhaps a sign of where his career is going.
Yes he has time out through injury, but he has also been lucky that other United players notably Sebastien Schweinsteiger have missed games thus meaning that he has been in the time at times when he might not have been.
He joined United for Champions League football, yet for him that has meant 4 starts and an appearance as sub out of the 8 games the Red Devils played is Europe's top competition and now he finds himself in exactly the same position his former team did six months ago, perhaps he is reflecting that if he had stayed at Saints there is a good chance he might have helped his former side to beat Midtjylland and progress, he most certainly would have had more of a chance to influence the game than he had last night and ironically if he had lead Saints to victory in Denmark then he might well have contributed more to United's season than he has don so far.
So why is Morgan Schneiderlin following his former team mates into footballing obscurity ? it is certainly not about ability, Schneiderlin like Lallana and co before him had proven himself at Premier League level with Saints he had experience at International level.
The answer is probably about choosing the wrong team, Manchester United like Liverpool and Arsenal have one thing in common they are all striving to match past glories and they are buying their way to doing that and it is a short term view.
In fairness none of them could have predicted just how badly their respective sides would fair, indeed this season all the so called big sides are struggling, even if Schneiderlin had joined Manchester City or Chelsea he would be faring no better and the irony is that his transfer fee to United was more than the entire Leicester City side cost.
So where does Schneiderlin's career go from here ? the answer is far from certain, indeed United's own fans are approaching meltdown, if we think we have a few bedwetter's then our numbers are dwarfed by the amount by United's massed legion's of "Sofawetter's" and this could well drag the Old Trafford club into the abysss and lead them down the road Liverpool have been walking down for two decades or more now.
United seem certain to have a new manager next season, but will he rate Schneiderlin ? will he want to ship him out, clear out the culture of defeat and bring in his own players, that could well be the case and then Schneiderlin will face a dilemma, where will he go next, his reputation is tainted, the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City are not going to be in the running, perhaps his old manager Pochettino will offer him a lifeline at White Hart Lane.
The only problem with that though is whether MoPo will still be with Spurs next season with United already being reported as being seeking his services and let's face it if we draw another Titanic comparison, Mauricio Pochettino does not seem the type to let the women and children go first in the lifeboats, he is very much a man whose loyalty lies to himself, something for Spurs fans to ponder.
So Pochettino moving to Old Trafford looks like the only way Schneiderlin will flourish at United, as a player who worked with the Argentinian at St Mary's he would be seen as a trusted player in the dressing room, the foundation to build the team on.
But if Pochettino is not in Schneiderlin's future then what is, as mentioned in England his options will be limited, returning to St Mary's with his tail between his legs could be better than staying at Old Trafford and indeed better than any other option open to him, but would he be willing to do that ?
The answer is probably no, but any move for Schneiderlin will be difficult because of the high wages he is on, few teams on the Continent would be able to afford those wages and few teams in England would be willing to match them.
So Morgan Schneiderlin may be reflecting this morning as to whether he should have stayed at Southampton, he may have further time to do that if the form of the last month of both club's is repeated in the next six and he might just see his former club finish above his current one.
The Titanic comparison is harsh and perhaps such a tragedy should not be joked at, but it is an old one and I'm not the first person to use it and perhaps some members of the Saints squad should be considering their own career path's and whether the grass is really greener on the other side of the fence, so far that has not been been the case for those who have left Southampton of late.