Jurgen Klopp has rarely enjoyed a Happy New Year as Liverpool manager.
The dismal 3-1 Premier League reverse at Brentford on Monday was merely the latest in a run of results that have seen the Reds begin the calendar in frustrating fashion.
Klopp's first experience of festive football in England set the tone in 2016, when goals from Michail Antonio and former Liverpool striker Andy Carroll earned West Ham United a 2-0 win on the Reds' last-ever league visit to Upton Park.
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The following year, a disappointing 2-2 draw at Sunderland in which Liverpool shipped two penalties and waved goodbye to Africa Cup of Nations-bound Sadio Mane was the start of a run of just two wins in 12 that saw Klopp's side tumble out of title contention and exit the League Cup and FA Cup.
In 2018, there was a dramatic injury-time winner for Ragnar Klavan at Burnley, but the 2-1 defeat at Manchester City 12 months later ultimately decided the destiny of the championship. Even the title-winning season of 2020 witnessed a major slog before Sheffield United were eventually beaten 2-0 at Anfield, and in 2021 there was acrimony after a controversial 1-0 loss at a bitterly-cold and empty Southampton.
Last year, Liverpool threw away a two-goal lead at Chelsea as they were pegged back to a 2-2 draw. That represented a fourth successive game without a win and, after an impressive start to the season, cracks were beginning to show.
Indeed, it emerged following the 2-0 Premier League win at Arsenal two months later that the Reds had sat down as a squad and admitted the propensity for throwing away leads simply couldn't continue.
"We had to readjust it, to be honest, in early January," said Klopp. "We have to agree on defence first because otherwise you are like any team, you win or you lose, you win or you lose. Today we win 2-0 but we had games we won 1-0 and we wouldn’t have won these games if we are not defensively spot on."
This season's reset, of course, was supposed to have come in Dubai at the warm-weather training camp. But eight goals leaked in four games following the resumption of the Premier League season - and the ongoing trend for conceding first rather than being unable to hold on to advantages - suggests more work, at least on the team as a defensive unit, needs to be done. The hamstring injury to Virgil van Dijk will accelerate the need for change.
It must be said the festive period, difficult in a regular campaign, was particularly demanding this term. Manchester United and Fulham were the only teams to take nine points from nine, the former aided by a favourable fixture list in which they faced three of the bottom six while the latter benefited from two red cards for Crystal Palace in one match.
In fact, Liverpool actually gained ground on three of the five teams ahead of them in the Premier League table.
But if they are to keep closing the gap, another early January change of mindset is required. Liverpool are going to have to take a collective step backwards if they want to start moving forwards again.
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