While Barcelona supporters presumably felt some relief and respite from their recent pain when Ronald Koeman was relieved of his duties as head coach, they were only allowed to bask in that glow for a matter of days.
Then, reality bit them - twice as hard.
The Blaugrana were already having to stretch their squad to its limit when they welcomed Alaves to a half-empty Camp Nou, and given the lack of turnout for the occasion, 'hope' was clearly in short supply.
Supporters were right to be pessimistic over their beloved club's fortunes, too, as Barça somehow ended up in a worse state than they were 90 minutes prior, despite witnessing some crumbs of positivity and comfort on their luxurious green turf.
Nico and Gavi were bright, beaming beacons of light in the midfield, while a string of youngsters all came on to show the city of Barcelona what the future may look like over the course of the next decade.
