After an historic day for the ages at Old Trafford last week, Liverpool were brought back down to earth with an almighty Anfield thud.
First, the bad news.
After scoring their 44th and 45th goals of the season already, the Reds, somehow, conspired to fritter away what could yet be two vital points at home to Brighton and Hove Albion.
It leaves them trailing early pace-setters Chelsea by three points as the Premier League gets set to turn into a three-horse race as the clocks go back this weekend.
For the good news; Manchester City were beaten 2-0 at the Etihad by Crystal Palace to ensure the Reds retain second place, for now.
Liverpool also remain unbeaten in 24 games and are now just one off the club record set back in the early 80s.
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You're still thinking about the bad news, aren't you?
That is entirely understandable given the careless nature of the performance against Graham Potter's upwardly mobile and brave unit.
This was most unlike what Jurgen Klopp and his players have been serving up this campaign.
On Friday, Klopp had asked those in the stands to leave complacency at the entrance door for this most routine of 3 o'clock Saturday fixtures.
"We have to be really good and we need people [in the crowd] with the right understanding," Klopp said.
The Reds boss was wary of an expectant crowd simply waiting for those in red to deliver the kind of blistering display that has become the norm.
And for a period, the Kop responded as Liverpool raced into an early lead thanks to Jordan Henderson and Sadio Mane.
As Brighton scratched and clawed their way back into it, however, there was only anxiety to be found on the terraces.
It was almost tangible and it eventually spread on to the pitch as Klopp's charges looked unwilling and unable to take responsibility in possession.
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"In the second half I was not overly happy with the body language of some," said Klopp after the game, indicating that the tension had got the better of some of his stars.
There was little penetration behind a well-drilled and muscular Brighton defence as the Seagulls got their blocks, tackles and headers in throughout.
But to describe Brighton simply as a doggedly defensive outfit does them a huge disservice. The flow of traffic went both ways at Anfield.
Up top, Potter's side were menacing and will feel unfortunate not to have won the game after a stirring second-half that will leave Klopp and his staff holding a tense Monday morning inquest.
Liverpool had their first inside five minutes when Henderson arched one past Robert Sanchez after good work down the left by an otherwise subdued Salah.
After managing to regain fitness in the week, Naby Keita's run-out lasted less than 20 minutes as he succumbed to another injury before he was withdrawn for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
A hamstring was Klopp's early assessment of the Guinea star's latest ailment.
The sense of perplexing frustration over this gifted-yet-injury-prone No.8 goes on.
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Like at Old Trafford on Sunday, it was a game that summed up his time at the club, full of bright flashes of excellence that were eventually cut short by an injury setback.
However, any lingering sense of disappointment felt by Klopp was quickly - if only briefly - washed away by Oxlade-Chamberlain who delivered an inch-perfect cross for Mane to make it 2-0.
From there, though, the afternoon only took darker turns.
Mane thought he had his second of the afternoon after his pressing of goalkeeper Sanchez inside the six-yard box, but the ball struck his hand on its way to goal.
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No doubt emboldened by the disallowed goal and the realisation that they were still in the game, Potter's men poured forward in numbers and got themselves back into the contest after Enock Mwepu's cross-come-shot looped over Alisson.
There was more than an element of fortune about it, but one that Potter will feel was a slice of luck earned given how his fearless charges threw caution to the wind.
Salah thought his hot streak had stretched to 11 in a row when he rounded Sanchez shortly into the second period but he had strayed just offside before finishing off Mane's pass.
It would be about as good as it got the Egyptian who endured an off-day after seemingly months of world-class displays. He can be forgiven for this one.
The tension levels rose significantly as Brighton sensed an equaliser and it was Leandro Trossard who got it, firing past Alisson after a well-weighted pass from former Reds man Adam Lallana.
The midfield lacked balance, rhythm and cohesion and that was understandable given it was a trio that was foisted upon the manager through a succession of injuries.
Curtis Jones struggled to impose himself and Henderson looked dead on his feet for the final 15 minutes as the demands for a winner were screamed down on the players.
Klopp sent on Diogo Jota for an increasingly peripheral Roberto Firmino but the Portuguese was ineffective, barely getting a touch in his 15-minute cameo.
Takumi Minamino was even less impactful off the bench, doing little but picking up a booking for over-running the ball before thundering into a late challenge.
It was an incident that summed up the day.
