Southampton passed on the opportunity of hiring Carlos Corberan in December, who took over relegation-threatened Valencia and has brought them in contention for a European qualifying spot in La Liga.
Today, mid-May has officially arrived, which means there are merely a handful of days left to close out the current season. From the league winner's point of view, the entire European season has been memorable.
Coming to the relegation boys, it's another dreadful year gone by that failed to lift up their on-field spirits. Amidst all these hardships, there's La Liga outfit Valencia, who can be rightfully labelled as being cut from a whole different cloth.
At the turn of the year, they were crying out for crucial points to save their first-division status. Around five months later, their objectives have skyrocketed for the better, and they lie in touching distance of securing European qualification.
Corberan miss proving costly for Southampton with each passing day
Firstly, hats off to them for their commendable fightback. Honestly, Southampton can learn a ton of top-flight tricks from them, but manager recruitment is where things become worse for the Saints.
That's because Carlos Corberan is overseeing Valencia's ambitious European dream, who could have been a Saint currently.
It's one thing to miss out on a relegation avoiding coach and it's another to waste a potential European chance. And Southampton have only themselves to blame for managing to fail both targets with a single transfer mistake.
Don't get me wrong, I am not lamenting a missed Conference League berth from the bottom table scenario Southampton were staring for the entire season. Instead, it's about imagining a likely mid-table finish which wasn't out of the Saints' reach in the first place.
Overall, Valencia's bold risk paid off while Southampton are again left with a familiar what-if regret. Will the club take the Corberan transfer mistake as a learning remains to be seen.
Yet, what's certain is that the widening management question isn't fading in the near future. Let's hope it concludes with a "worth the wait" feeling rather than who is the next coaching shortlist on the transfer table.