It may not be the worst possible, but Argentina's start to the Copa America has been nothing short of a nightmare.
Finalists in 2015 and 2016, where they lost to Chile on penalties, the 14-time champions followed up their disastrous 2-0 defeat by Colombia by picking up a barely-deserved draw against Paraguay on Wednesday night.
Lionel Messi once again proved the saviour, his second-half penalty essentially keeping his country's hopes alive and saving them from the embarrassment of an early exit. Now they face Qatar on Sunday where the prospect of humiliation is even higher and nothing less than a win will see them progress to the next phase.
Lionel Messi and Argentina have endured a torrid start to this year's Copa America in Brazil
The Argentine's talisman scored from the spot to keep their tournament alive on Wednesday
Even then, four points may still not be enough to guarantee them second spot, nor a place in the last eight as one of the best third placed finishers. If it is, a quarter-final showdown with favourites Brazil in Porto Alegre would most likely await them.
Bottom of their group below even Qatar, a showdown with the hosts in their current condition would surely spell a painful exit for Messi and his team-mates - so what has gone wrong?
Naturally, just like it was during the 2018 World Cup where La Albiceleste fell to eventual winners France, the reaction from the Argentine press has been scathing.
While there have been no mock funerals or minute's silence on television yet, as there were after the humbling 3-0 group-stage loss to Croatia, coach Lionel Scaloni has been on the receiving end of most of the scorn.
Coach Lionel Scaloni has been on the receiving end of a lot of criticism in the national press
With anything less than victory in the final at the Maracana in Rio on July 7, he is tipped to find himself out of a job in the same manner his predecessor and former boss Jorge Sampaoli was.
Appointed caretaker and then handed the hotseat full time, the manager remarked that Argentina boasted 'pure dynamite' after a 5-1 friendly win against Nicaragua almost a fortnight ago.
In the words of local sports daily Ole on Thursday morning however, it has been claimed that Argentina has instead come to the Copa America 'lacking fire power to subdue and damage its opponents'.
The criticism continued; the national team 'looks like a firework of bad quality, those sold on the street on the eve of the fiestas, which can explode in your hands when you light them.'
Paraguay's Richard Sanchez watches the ball hit the back of the net in Belo Horizonte
Argentina can still qualify but need to win the game against Qatar to stand any chance
In addition, indecisiveness over tactics - choosing between a 4-4-2 a 4-3-3, or having to revert to a 2-8-0 when the heat is on - was also scoffed at.
Ahead of their Group B fixture in Belo Horizonte on
