With seven games still remaining, Southampton's relegation to the Championship has been confirmed, making this the earliest relegation in Premier League history.
To add insult to injury, they are still a point short of equalling Derby County's record low 11-point tally from 2007-08 season, meaning Saints are on course to become the worst team the league has ever seen.
This rather drawn-out conclusion comes as no surprise and the campaign has been nothing short of a disaster, but where did it all go wrong?
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Recruitment and quality of it
It is more than safe to say that Southampton brought in enough players upon their Premier League return, but the lack of quality in the right areas has become more evident week-on-week.
This was not helped by the fact the club failed to find a replacement for Jason Wilcox as director of football until mid-February, despite him leaving in April 2024, meaning they went into two transfer windows largely unaided.
Southampton added 14 new additions to their squad in the summer, including Aaron Ramsdale, Ben Brereton-Diaz and Mateus Fernandes - as well as making the deals for Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Flynn Downes permanent.
However, very few lived up to expectation and the overall squad did not feel like it gelled on the pitch, with shortcomings at both ends being exposed as the season dragged on.
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Struggle in front of goal
Finding the back of the net was a problem for Saints when they last got relegated from the top-flight in 2023, but after scoring 87 times in the Championship, there was hope that history would not repeat itself.
However, with just 23 goals scored - 13 fewer than they managed last time out in the Premier League - it appears to be the same old story.
Despite netting 24 times last season, Adam Armstrong struggled to follow it up or find any sort of form, eventually joining West Brom on loan in January.
Brereton-Diaz also struggled for form since his arrival from Villareal and failed to score, while Cameron Archer has only netted twice in the league, his last coming back in October.
To make things worse, after acquiring an abundance of attackers to try and help them win games, Paul Onuachu - who the club have tried to sell on multiple occasions - has actually scored more than anyone else in the squad, with the Nigerian netting just four times.
A telling statistic that sums up Saints' season.
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Russell Martin predicament
Stick or twist? That was the question on everyone's lips for quite some time.
After achieving promotion to the top-flight on his first attempt, Martin was rewarded with a new contract and the feeling around the club was positive.
However, this feeling swiftly faded and his possession-based philosophy was questioned week-by-week, especially as individual errors due to this system kept costing Southampton results.
His stubbornness to change eventually cost him his job in mid-December with the club rock-bottom on just five points, a change that still felt too late despite 22 games to play.
Whether there was a feeling of loyalty or just a sheer lack of options, this is likely a decision that Sports Republic look back on with regret.
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Change at the helm, not in results
Ivan Juric was the man Southampton turned to in order to keep them up, a decision that raised many questions and sunk many fans' hopes of survival.
With previous experience of keeping teams in the league on a small budget in Italy, AS Roma then took a chance on him, but he lasted just 12 games in charge.
Despite being a heavy metal enthusiast, his style of football was much more reserved and low-scoring draws was something his sides were synonymous with.
This was not the case in the Premier League.
Loss after loss, it seems near-impossible that the Croatian fulfils his 18-month contract that he was given, with Sheffield Wednesday's Danny Rohl already heavily linked with taking over next season.
