Facts is a word that will be forever be associated with Rafa Benitez and the facts of this miserable situation show why this sorry chapter has closed.
From the last 13 games, there has been one win, six points, 12 goals scored and 27 conceded. They have shipped the first goal in 15 of their last 19 league and cup fixtures and the prospect of them being relegated is real. No man, no matter what their CV, could withstand such a calamity.
For some of the increasingly enraged fan base – and possibly some of the players – the removal of Benitez will be seen as a relief, the lifting of a cloud 200 days after his controversial appointment.