Real Madrid and Rafael Benitez never looked like a marriage built to last, and the punters who bet that he wouldn't see out the season at 2/1 have been vindicated within seven months following his dismissal and replacement with Zinedine Zidane.
The former La Liga and Champions League winner was being criticised by fans even when embarking on a 14-match unbeaten start, so it was inevitable that a drop in results would accelerate a divorce, and four defeats and a draw in the next 11 proved enough to force a separation.
In fairness, 37 points from 18 league games is eight less than they had last term and seven short of their 2013/14 total, and neither of those campaigns ended in title triumph. Jose Mourinho had one fewer in 2012/13, but had his past success at the club to lean on. Without it, Benitez became their first mid-season casualty since 2008.
President Florentino Perez claimed regret, labelling the Spaniard "a great professional and a magnificent person", yet said that he was "very proud" with his choice of successor, decreeing that "for Zidane, the word 'impossible' doesn't exist".
Real Madrid's greatest galactico has long been regarded as a future Bernabeu boss but, while it worked out brilliantly for Barcelona with Pep Guardiola, Gary Neville's four-fixture winless La Liga initiation highlights that a big name and billing as a coach of promise is no guarantee of instant glory.
Many will assume that their Clasico foes will be the beneficiaries of any early struggles for Zidane. However, it is neighbours and improbable 2013/14 champions Atletico Madrid who top La Liga, and they will be confident of at least being kings of the capital for the second time in three years given their four-point lead, the slickness of their setup and the likelihood of teething problems at Real.
Outperforming Barcelona will be trickier as the holders have a game in hand with which to overcome their two-point deficit to Diego Simeone's budget-conquerors, yet they have won seven in eight and taken three points more than the treble winners over the last four matches, so have the momentum.
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