Mark Hudson learned on Saturday night that his time as Cardiff City manager was up.
It's a conversation the board have had with their manager far too frequently in recent years. Next week, this reporter will sit in front of his sixth manager in four seasons. At the time of writing, that is Dean Whitehead, however that could rapidly change, too.
Vincent Tan back in November took umbrage with the notion that some people questioned whether the club had a plan, due to the seemingly haphazard nature of managerial appointments and player recruitment.
READ MORE: Cardiff City sack Mark Hudson as new manager search begins immediately
"I hear talk that we have no plan. Do you honestly think I would have put in so much of my money if I had no plan? Do you think we are idiots?" he said firmly.
"Do you think I would be putting in money every month, particularly during the pandemic, if I didn't want success?"
Well, two months on and Cardiff City fans up and down the country are once again scratching their heads. If this is the plan, then it's either a bad one or it's not working. Everyone can agree on that.
It is understandable to a degree that the higher-ups at Cardiff have their eyes elsewhere. They hoped the football would take care of itself when they battled a hat-trick of lawsuits over the last year or so, the most financially onerous of which, the Emiliano Sala case, they are still right in the thick of.
Tan and his board members are all hugely successful business people in their own right. But until Tan admits more help is needed on the footballing front, this perennial downward spiral looks likely to continue.
The Cardiff board are very capable people and to suggest otherwise is either disingenuous or represents a lack of understanding as to what huge responsibilities they have away from the pitch on a Saturday afternoon.
But from a purely sporting standpoint, they need a football expert on the Board; someone making the managerial calls and signing off transfers fitting a philosophy which will outlast all the players and managers.
Stephen McPhail has had success at Shamrock Rovers, while Matthew Crocker, Southampton's former director of football operations and ex-Bluebirds academy manager, is leaving the south coast club at the end of the season. Mark Delaney, Aston Villa's former academy coach, is now free. David Hughes would have been perfect for the role, but he's taken a job up at Manchester United's youth system. Seyi Olofinjana, one of the most intelligent footballers Cardiff has seen in recent years, left his role as sporting director for Swiss club Grasshopper last summer.
There are surely options out there if they were willing to look for them.
Indeed, we understand there are people on the board who are open to getting help in this capacity, but getting the ultimate seal of approval from the top continues to prove tricky.
But the track record over the last four seasons is unsustainable. Managers with wildly different philosophies have been employed consecutively - take going from uber-negative Mick McCarthy and his five centre-backs to Steve Morison's tiki-taka as an example. Seventeen players were brought in during the last window, all of whom will be on their third Cardiff manager by the time they make this decision. Ebou Adams hasn't kicked a ball for Cardiff yet and will be on his third manager by the time he eventually does.
Former City captain Jason Perry made a salient point at Cardiff City Stadium yesterday. He said alarm bells rang for him when listening to a Steve Morison press conference earlier this season, when the then Bluebirds boss used phrases like "I want this type of player", "these players suit my philosophy" and "this is how I believe football should be played".
Now, better-run clubs than Cardiff tend to use phrases such as "they are a good fit for this club" or "they suit the way we play".
Morison was entrusted with bringing 17 new players into the building last summer and then got the boot eight days after the last one, Callum Robinson, walked through the door.
Cardiff's play has altered since Morison left. Under Hudson, Cardiff were more direct and did away with the slow build-up from the back. The influence of players like Ryan Allsop, brought in for his footballing skills as much as anything, Perry Ng and Ryan Wintle, all of whom were central to this new style under Morison, have waned.
It might well have been the right decision to let Hudson go, the proof will be in the pudding come May, but the broader point is he shouldn't have been put in that situation anyway. The third interim manager to get the gig on a full-time basis after a mediocre start. There must be a better method in place to ensure this revolving managerial door does not continue swinging. Because it will keep hitting managers in the backside on the way out.
Appointing a force of nature like Neil Warnock in 2017 is nigh-on impossible to keep doing. You get that sort of slam-dunk appointment once in a blue moon.
Of Cardiff's last nine managers, dating back to 2014, only one is still in work, Neil Harris, and he is managing Gillingham, who are rock-bottom of the Football League. It's a tough job, this Cardiff gig, but one with massive potential and a big fan base willing you to succeed. It evidently comes with risks and burdenous responsibilities, though, and so few actually get it right.
To minimise the chances of getting another managerial appointment wrong, though, a sporting director or technical director, whichever title you wish to choose, should be solely responsible for getting these things right. Someone accountable for creating a structure, strong identity and winning culture for managers and players to come into.
What is Cardiff's identity right now? How informed are Cardiff fans about the plan and vision for the club going forward? It should be someone's job to implement that and that responsibility should not fall on the manager's shoulders alone. That needs to come from above.
And this is even more pertinent in this time of relative financial austerity at the club. Throwing money at the problem is no longer an option, as it once was, meaning every transfer or managerial appointment must be bang on in order to reduce the chances of wasted investment from the owner.
This board has brought Premier League football to Cardiff twice. It has been a period of success in that regard. Tan desperately wants that again but he wants a sustained stay in the top flight. But by their own admission, even Tan himself, the club have also made mistakes. Laurels cannot be rested upon in this game because the game moves on so quickly and it will soon come back to bite you.
A drop to League One is unthinkable and the next appointment might be a short-term one simply to stave off that threat. But it must be that - short term. Get to the summer and implement a proper structure, with someone responsible for it, to move this great club forward once again.
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