Amid the drama and emotion of his equalising goal for Manchester United against Leeds on Wednesday night, Jadon Sancho still had the presence of mind to point a finger to his temple as he celebrated in front of the Stretford End.
Sancho's joy was understandable. It was almost four months since he had last appeared in the Premier League after taking time out to get mentally and physically fit enough to play for United again, and it was a crucial goal to bring his team level at 2-2.
The celebration is a little harder to explain. The finger-to-the- temple gesture will be familiar to anyone who has seen Sancho's team-mate Marcus Rashford score this season. Or Bukayo Saka who, like Sancho and Rashford, was pilloried for missing a penalty in England's shootout defeat by Italy in the Euro 2020 final.
Danny Welbeck, Ruben Neves and Joelinton are among the other Premier League footballers who have copied it.
Further down the divisions, it has become a trademark celebration for Hull City striker Oscar Estupinan and Chesterfield's Armando Dobra. Nor is it confined to football. Swiss tennis star Stan Wawrinka used it in his unexpected run to the 2014 Australian Open title.
It was to signify to his bench that he was mentally in the zone after overcoming two major psychological barriers by beating Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal en route to the trophy.
Djokovic has done it too. Wawrinka told Sportsmail on Thursday: 'I'm a fan of Marcus Rashford and I'm honoured that he has adopted the gesture.'
So has England fast bowler Jofra Archer, who replicated Rashford's celebration upon his return from injury. United fan Archer performed it after taking wickets in the SA20 and gave it another airing during his six for 40 for England against South Africa last week.
'I don't know what it means, but I've seen Rashford do it and he's a pretty nailed-on guy so I can't imagine it having a bad reason to it,' said Archer.
So what does it mean? Sources close to both Sancho and Rashford said on Thursday that it relates to shutting out the noise and being mentally tough.
United manager Erik ten Hag sent Sancho, 22, to work on an individual training programme in Holland towards the end of the year because he was not fit enough or in the right frame of mind, and he also took a break from social media after being the victim of abuse.
In Rashford's case, he has spoken about finding a better 'head space' this season after working through his summer holiday to focus on being fit for the new season. He has scored 23 goals for club and country so far.
Wolves midfielder Neves, meanwhile, says he points to his temple after every goal to pay tribute to his hero Andrea Pirlo.
Neves tried to model his game on the great former Italy playmaker from a young age, and settled on this celebration after reading Pirlo's autobiography I Think Therefore I Play in 2017.
He has marked every goal since then in this manner. When he scored against Liverpool last weekend, Neves placed a forefinger on his temple while also pointing to his chest. The Portugal star appeared to be suggesting that he had been the one to patent the celebration.
Colombia international Estupinan has marked each of his 12 Championship goals for Hull this season in the same way.
The 26-year-old said on Thursday it was not copied from anyone in particular but is a reminder to maintain the right mentality and dates back to his five years with Vitor Guimaraes in Portugal.
Which brings us back to Sancho. No one has questioned the quality that persuaded United to pursue him for nearly two years before paying Borussia Dortmund a transfer fee of £73million.
It is understood that the on-off nature of his move to Old Trafford took its toll on Sancho, and so did the increasingly toxic atmosphere that greeted him when he arrived at the club in 2021, just days after his penalty was saved by Italy's Gianluigi Donnarumma in the Euros final.
At Old Trafford on Wednesday, the Leeds fans could still be heard singing, 'Sancho and Rashford let the country down'.
There have been times when Sancho must have questioned whether he made the right choice in joining United. In Ten Hag, however, he has found a coach who is not afraid to think outside the box and send him away to recuperate.
On the evidence of Wednesday's celebrations, it has paid off.
