At 2pm the team sheets were in at the KCOM Stadium and Branislav Ivanovic, along with the worst-kept secret in west London, was out.
A surprise? Hardly. While it would be harsh to criticise a man who has been a fine servant to Chelsea, fans will tell you this one had been a long time coming. The Serbian right-back, now 32, has looked leggy for the best part of a year.
A chastening afternoon at Arsenal, including one particularly humbling flick from Keiran Gibbs, which left him standing, saw Conte's axe fall.
As we are told, Ivanovic is close to the owner, who was at Chelsea's Cobham training ground three times this week.