Approaching the midway point in the La Liga season, Real Madrid are in an unthinkable position. But what has gone wrong?
Outside of the top four and 10 points behind leaders Barcelona, Santiago Solari's side suffered their sixth defeat in 18 La Liga games on Sunday, going down 2-0 at home to mid-table Real Sociedad.
To put that into context, they lost just six games in the entire 2017/18 season, and just three the season before as Zinedine Zidane led them to the La Liga title.
Solari's honeymoon period is now over, and Real are struggling again. But just what has gone wrong?
Ronaldo-sized hole
"Cristiano is a champion, he's part of our history, he's ours, we do not miss him because he's a player of ours and will always be part of our history even if now it plays for Juventus," said Solari in November.
Cristiano Ronaldo left Real for Juventus in the summer
Very sentimental, but the cold hard fact is Real Madrid have lost 45 goals a season.
His peak years may be behind him and financially Real needed to sell, but there is a huge Ronaldo-sized hole in their attack, and more importantly, their attitude.
Their goals-per-game ratio is 1.44 this season compared with 2.47 last season, and they're having less shots and shots on target per game, too.
Real Madrid statistics
2017/18 2018/19
Goals per game 2.47 1.44
Shots per game 18.39 16
Shots OT per game 7.45 5.78
Goals conceded per game 1.16 1.28
Shot conversion 13.45% 9%
After years of playing the bridesmaids, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema are now centre stage, but have just 11 La Liga goals between them this season. Goals are not coming from elsewhere, either; Sergio Ramos is the team's joint second-highest scorer with four.
We can't be crying for someone who didn't want to be here" said Isco in October, but whether Ronaldo saw his long-term future at Real or not, during each 90-minute stint he was the leader Real are sorely missing.
Isco fall out
A fan favourite, Isco has been restricted to a fringe role since Solari took over from Julen Lopetegui in November.
Isco is yet to start a league game under Solari, and much was made of the 26-year-old's apparent refusal to shake the coach's hand in the dressing room after a humiliating 3-0 defeat by Eibar in late November, a loss Toni Kroos described as "the worst I've seen in my five years here."
Isco reportedly does not feel trusted by new Rea Madrid coach Santiago Solari
With Bale injured for Sunday's game against Sociedad, all the pre-match talk was of Isco potentially starting and proving his worth. He was left on the bench and given a half-hour cameo at 1-0 down as Vinicius was handed a first start.
Widely recognised as one of Real's top performers, the fall-out will no doubt have caused fractions between Solari and president Florentino Perez, who wants to restrict inner conflict and keep Isco at the Bernabeu.
If he was to leave, a January move away seems unlikely. So Isco's future at Real may depend on what comes first: Solari's exit or the summer transfer window.
Ageing stars
There is a feeling that Real's three Champions League successes masked an ageing team struggling to keep up with an increasingly competitive La Liga. Fine in the sprint, the big games which needed big-name players, but not so much in the marathon of a 38-game season.
Karim Benzema (31) Luka Modric (33) Sergio Ramos (32) and Marcelo (30) are the spine of Solari's side, while Toni Kroos and Gareth Bale are months away from their 30th birthdays.
Even without Ronaldo, Real have one of the oldest average starting XIs in La Liga this season at 28 years and 10 days.
Sergio Ramos, 33, is among several ageing Real Madrid stars
Sergio Ramos, 33, is among several ageing Real Madrid stars
Real are slowly looking to correct the average age in the squad, spending £50m on 18-year-old Vinicius in the summer, replacing Keylor Navas with Thibaut Courtois and taking 19-year-old Brahim Diaz from Manchester City this week.
Solari has also given debuts to four youngsters - Javi Sanchez, Fran Garcia, Cristo and Fidalgo - since taking over, not forgetting his roots at Real's B team Castilla
But the lack of opportunities given to young players over the past few years have already bitten Real. A lack of depth means the summer window is vital, whether Solari is in charge or not.
What next?
Even by Real's standards, two sackings in the space of three months seems too drastic, so Solari will no doubt be given more time, with a Club World Cup victory as his ammo.
"Today everything went wrong," Solari said after Sunday's defeat, but Ballon d'Or winner Modric is defending his manager.
The fixture list does not improve for Solari
The fixture list does not improve for Solari
"Our coach is doing a great job, but he can't score goals nor stop [the penalty] at the start of the match. He is motivated, but we players who are on the pitch have to do things better and be more focused.
"There are several players who are not playing at their best. I have to improve and take responsibility."
The fixture list doesn't make good reading for Solari, however. After a trip to Betis next up in La Liga on Sunday, they host high-flying Sevilla and surprise package Alaves, either side of a trip to Espanyol.
They then travel down the road for a Madrid derby, before their Champions League round of 16 first leg with Ajax in Amsterdam.
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