Gian Piero Gasperini's savage put down of Atalanta star man Ademola Lookman, who, less than 12 months ago scored a stunning hat-trick to secure the biggest trophy of the Italian's career, came as quite a shock to most.
But to many familiar with the veteran coach, it was standard fare.
Gasperini has widely been lauded for masterminding a revolution in Bergamo. It has been quite the feat to transform the fortunes of a club in the shadow of European giants AC and Inter Milan. Indeed, Atalanta have caught up with and, in recent seasons, eclipsed the seven-time Champions League winners, while they are one of the challengers look to dethrone Inter in Serie A this term.
However, Gasperini's 'deeply hurtful' jibe at Lookman following his penalty miss in La Dea's Champions League play-off defeat by Club Brugge has brought to light his catalogue clashes with former players.
Lookman is the latest in a growing list to object to the 67-year-old's methods. Perhaps the most surprising part of the most recent episode is the Nigerian international's willingness to publicly take on the former midfielder while still at the club.
After Gasperini called him 'one of the worst penalty takers' he had even seen, Lookman took to social media to share his sadness over his manager's comments.
'Being singled out in the manner I have been not only hurts but feels deeply disrespectful, not least because of the immense hard work and commitment I have always put in each and every day to help bring success to this club and to the incredible fans of Bergamo,' the reigning African Footballer of the Year wrote on Instagram.
'In truth, I have dealt with many difficult moments during my time here - the majority of which I have never spoken about because in my opinion the team must always be protected and must come first.
'This makes what happened last night even more hurtful. Along with our incredible fans, we as a team are hurting too with last night's result.
'During the match the designated penalty taker instructed me to take the penalty; and to support the team I took responsibility in the moment to do so.
'Life's about challenges and turning pain into power which I'll continue to do.'
Lookman, like the other players on this list, will soon depart Bergamo having made an inedible mark in the club's history. Gaspirini is yet to respond to the winger's statement but based on the evidence presented by former stars, he could be out in the cold until the summer.
Joakim Maehle
Another recent critic of Gaspirini is Denmark international Joakim Maehle, who spent two seasons at the Gewiss Stadium.
The defender slammed the manager for running the team like a dictatorship and recalled one incident when the Italian objected to him giving his young compatriot Rasmus Hojlund a lift to training.
'The coach decided everything. And there wasn't really any freedom,' he told reporters per Danish site tipsbladet.dk. 'Event though I lived in a nice place and the weather was good, I didn't have time to enjoy it because we spent so many days and hours at the training ground.
'It was super tough mentally. Even if you played a great game at the weekend, and the following one you didn't play too well for 20 minutes, you would go to the back of the queue again.
'There was not the continuity you see in other places. Mentally, I could feel that I really needed a change.'
Maehle is said to have smiled when one journalist asked if being at the club felt like 'a prison', adding: 'You are saying it.'
Of Gasperini, he said: 'He really decided everything. Sometimes, when we had a double training session, he said we should stay and sleep at the training facility, so we were not allowed to go back home.
'You don't feel like a person. You feel like a number. You have no relationship with the coach. He would stand there and blame someone for something strange.
'For example, he was furious when Rasmus (Hojlund) and I came to training by car together.
'He didn't want us to drive together. Because then we could sit and talk together on the way to training, and enjoy ourselves. He didn't want that, and I got scolded even if it had been agreed with the club because he (Hojlund) had no driver.
'I don't know if it's typical Italians,' Maehle continued. 'But some things make you angry and tired in the long run.'
Papu Gomez
The Argentine was a key member of Gasperini's first great Atalanta side and spent eight seasons at the club under the Italian in all.
Gomez painted another picture of the veteran, not just a workaholic who makes unreasonable demands of his players but, according to the winger, an abusive boss.
The diminutive forward accused the manager of attempting to physically attack him in the dressing room over an incident on the pitch in the Champions League match against Midtjylland in December 2020.
Understandably, their relationship did not recover and Gomez left the club in the January transfer window.
Unlike some of the other cases, the tale of Gasperini and Gomez hasa happy ending, as the pair reconciled last May. 'The peace', as reported by Football Italia, was brokered by Atalanta assistant manager Tullio Gritti and the owner of Caffe del Tasso in Bergamo, who is good friends with the pair.
The meeting took place ahead of the Europa League and Coppa Italia finals so perhaps the Italian was in a particularly cheery mood.
Merih Demiral
Turkish defender Merih Demiral is unlikely to sign a peace deal with Gasperini any time soon after his two-season spell with La Dea. Demiral backed up the claims of his former team-mate Maehle on social media in September 2023, writing: 'It's all true. You’ll learn all the facts soon, wait for the interview.'
In the aforementioned sit down, he said: 'I didn’t say goodbye to him when I left Bergamo, and he didn’t reach out to me anymore. Gasperini as a coach is not up for debate, results speak for him.
'But I don’t like his way of treating players. Humanly, I prefer De Zerbi, Sarri, and Pirlo: I would go to dinner with them, not with Gasperini.'