When Danny Rose decided to go public in August with his doubts about Tottenham’s wage structure and transfer policy, few believed he would play a significant role for the club again.
But against Crystal Palace he broke through the 90-minute barrier for the first time since the 2-2 draw with Manchester City on January 21, and is a step closer to completing a comeback that appeared impossible in the days that followed his remarkable comments in the summer.
As Nabil Bentaleb, Andros Townsend and others would confirm, there are rarely second chances for players who cross Mauricio Pochettino. Rose himself was fed up at Spurs, his head turned by interest from both Manchester clubs and Chelsea.
Relations between player and manager, once so strong, had cooled to such an extent that even though Rose was injured, it seemed for a while that a deal would be agreed with one of his suitors that would satisfy all parties.
In Pictures | Tottenham vs Crystal Palace | 05/11/2017
Yet Rose stayed and his challenge now is to re-establish himself as the best left-back in the Premier League after a long spell injured. This was his first League start since he sustained a serious knee injury in the 0-0 draw at Sunderland on January 31.
He needs to improve his fitness and match sharpness, not to mention displace Ben Davies, who has made a fine start to the campaign in Rose’s absence. It will be a difficult task: Rose was out for nearly nine months, meaning progress may be slow.
Yet if he can do it, Tottenham have a crucial asset as they pursue a major trophy at home and abroad.
Rose is getting there. He played the closing minutes of Spurs’ 1-1 draw at Real Madrid last month, in midfield - where he often operated for Leeds United’s junior sides.
He was in his regular left-back spot for the EFL Cup defeat by West Ham on October 25 and was there again on Sunday. While Rose still lacks the dynamism of his best days, there are signs it is starting to return.
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In defence, Rose was not troubled by his direct opponent, Palace midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek, or by the visitors’ right-back, Timothy Fosu-Mensah.
As the game continued, Rose attacked with more purpose, linking well with Christian Eriksen and substitute Mousa Dembele and finding several promising crossing positions.
Indeed, Rose had a hand in the only goal, sending in a low ball that found Moussa Sissoko.
Sissoko’s subsequent cross was not cleared properly by Yohan Cabaye, allowing Heung-min Son to collect the ball on the edge of the penalty area and curl it past Julian Speroni.
Davies is a far better player now than when he joined Tottenham in 2014 but he still lacks the attacking menace and defensive power of Rose at his best.
If both were fully fit, most managers would opt for Rose - but what call will Pochettino make when Tottenham reach the decisive period of the season?
In December and January, there will be enough fixtures to give both Davies and Rose plenty of time on the pitch. In the spring, we will surely see which of them Pochettino prefers - and that will give a clue about Rose’s long-term future at the club.
This is not a man who will be happy to be second choice. The Spurs boss said: "It’s always tough for a players when he is out for nearly 10 months, it’s tough to compete again.
"I was happy with his performance. Of course he’s not at his best but you can see he did well.
"Step by step, he needs to find his best form and help the team."
Who knows where Rose will be this time next year? But there is no doubt he can become a key man for Tottenham again between now and May.