Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had teetered on the edge many times before, but this time it was one step too far for Manchester United, and now he is gone.
Time and again beforehand, a mixture of forces would gather to drag him back from the brink - be that his own players, his old team-mates turned pundits, or the club's hierarchy. This time though, he was deserted.
Saturday's 4-1 embarrassment at the hands of Watford damaged the Norwegian beyond repair, and after post-match crisis talks - and the night to sleep on it - the club's hierarchy decided enough is enough.
It is, of course, not this result in isolation that caused the Glazers - the owners of Manchester United - to speak to chief executive officer Ed Woodward over the immediate future of the man in charge.
Criticisms have been levelled at Solskjaer's United team ever since he took temporary charge in December 2018 following the end of Jose Mourinho's ill-fated term in charge at Old Trafford.
Eye-catching results and wave upon wave of nostalgia regularly ignited a feel-good factor that had been extinguished by the Portuguese boss's presence. But underneath, foundations were shaky.
Here, Sportsmail looks at five areas where the 48-year-old's tenure fell down, and the factors that ultimately led to to his demise.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's time at United has come to an embarrassing end after three years
It was always going to be a noticeable difference moving from Jose Mourinho to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
Mourinho is one of his generation's greatest tacticians, with a clear identity and a style of play. He likes his side to keep hold of the ball, he likes them to dominate by being strong at the back... and he likes them to win.
That was not enough for United fans, who, when the victories deserted the team, were left with a brand of football they didn't like, or indeed enjoy.
In that way, any brand of football with a whiff of attacking intention was going to win fans over in the short term, which is exactly what Solskjaer was able to do in turning his caretaker role into a permanent one.
His counter-attacking style caught opponents off guard and made for some memorable nights - not least in Paris in the last-16 of the Champions League.
United have had to get used to falling behind under Solskjaer - they did so 17 times last season
But results like the aggregate victory over PSG only served to paper over a lack of cohesive style that could be regularly implemented.
Swashbuckling comebacks became the norm, rather than actually dominating matches. No club took more points from losing positions in the Premier League last season, with United amassing an incredible 31 points after falling behind. They fell behind in 17 of their 38 matches.
That has continued this season - seven times in just 12 league matches to date. For comparison, Chelsea have fallen behind just once, Liverpool and Manchester City twice each.
Solskjaer's stars used to be able to dig the team out of those holes. That didn't appear the case any longer.
A real lack of leadershipSolskjaer knows all too well the importance of leaders in a dressing room. He was surrounded by them as he lifted title after title at United as a player.
Looking around the Old Trafford changing room now, though, is a different story.
There is no doubt that there are players in the current United team who have a desire to win - Paul Pogba and Raphael Varane have both proved that with their national team having lifted the World Cup - and more recently the Nations League - with France.
But at United, the Norwegian has never found a cohesive group of dependable players he can trust to lead by example on the pitch.
Saturday served as a microcosm for the issues Solskjaer has had with his senior stars letting him down, made clear Bruno Fernandes' gestures post-match, urging supporters to blame the under-performing players as well as the manager.
Paul Pogba's red card last month served as evidence of the real lack of leadership at United
Bruno Fernandes made a point of asking supporters to blame the players as well as the boss
Wearing the captain's armband, Harry Maguire was woefully at fault for the second goal against Liverpool, and his red card against Watford once again showed the bad side of his game.
Against Liverpool, Pogba was trusted to come on from the bench to regain a bit of composure for the side, but proceeded to be at fault for the fifth goal before being sent off for a wild two-footed lunge.
When the most experienced and influential players in your side are putting in
