It was supposed to be different this time.
When Chelsea appointed Frank Lampard in the summer of 2019, the indication was they had moved to break their ruthless hire and fire cycle.
Following the sale of Eden Hazard and amid a transfer ban, the club, which had gone through 14 managerial changes in the 16 years leading to that point, were looking for a new direction.
It was time for a refresh, an overhaul, and the Chelsea hierarchy seemed willing to create time and space for their young, emerging squad to grow and develop. A period to unpick the problems of the past so as to come again stronger.
Chelsea legend Lampard seemed a fitting figurehead for the project. While he was still green in terms of his own managerial career, he had that intangible quality of knowing the club and knew what these young players would have to go through to become winners at the highest level.
Considering it was nine years into his own playing career before he lifted a trophy, he knew the importance of time and patience, too.
It was an intriguing journey Lampard and his players were embarking on. An experiment to see whether things could be done differently in west London.
But Chelsea have pulled the plug on the process and Lampard has been sacked 18 months after his appointment. A poor recent run has left Chelsea 11 points off the top of the table, and the search for a replacement who can have an instant impact begins again.
It's a familiar situation Chelsea find themselves in - and one they were intending to avoid when they put their all-time top scorer in charge a couple of summers ago.
His debut campaign was initially labelled as a 'transition' season. It was a tag the ambitious Lampard didn't much like and one he tried to distance himself from - although keeping perspective on the bigger picture at Chelsea was key to assessing their returns in 2019/20.
Achieving top four would have constituted an "amazing season", given the circumstances, said Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp when Lampard was appointed. Amid the pressure of the run-in, when Chelsea were wobbling in the league, fifth or less felt like it would go down as a major disappointment. Full report here
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