Three managers, Champions League humiliation and genuine relegation fears! Sergio Ramos' fairy-tale Sevilla return is quickly turning into a nightmare

Los Nervionenses are no strangers to relegation peril, with the club finding themselves in a similarly tricky situation last season. Few saw this coming. During the 2021-22 campaign, they had done well, emerging as genuine title challengers, before a late-season drop off condemned them to a fourth-placed finish.

2022-23 was far more testing. The prior campaign, the board had added several high earners to the wage bill as they targeted a league title.

Anthony Martial, Erik Lamela and Thomas Delaney were among the experienced operators snapped up, but this increased salary bill soon began to cause problems after Sevilla were knocked out in the Champions League group stages despite being handed the kind draw of Red Bull Salzburg, Wolfsburg and Lille. This was only made worse when West Ham eliminated them from the Europa League in the round of 16.

With money tight the following summer, Sevilla sold star centre-backs Jules Kounde and Diego Carlos to Barcelona and Aston Villa respectively. Julen Lopetegui - who came close to being sacked before sporting director Monchi stepped in to save his skin - struggled with this upheaval, with his side winning just one of their opening seven La Liga games.

He would pay for this run with his job in October, with Jorge Sampaoli brought in to replace him. The change of manager did little to bring consistency domestically and again, the Champions League was a struggle.

Off the field, things weren't much better. Isco was acrimoniously released from his contract in December, with Sampaoli claiming that he "did not meet the club's expectations". At this point, with concerns growing exponentially on and off the pitch, it felt like Sevilla were sliding towards the relegation trap door.

And yet, Sevilla would end the very same season toasting a comfortable league survival as well as another European trophy. Key to the remarkable turnaround was Sampaoli's departure.

His spell was punctuated by questionable selection decisions and chronic underperformance, so it was little surprise when the club finally let him go following a damaging defeat to struggling Getafe in March.

His replacement, Jose Luis Mendilibar, orchestrated a near-instant turnaround, with Sevilla winning four of his first five games in charge. Running alongside this quite remarkable La Liga form was another stunning Europa League run.

En route to the final, Sevilla shocked both Manchester United and Juventus over two legs, setting up a mouth-watering clash with Jose Mourinho's Roma in Budapest. In a frightfully unwatchable final marred by gamesmanship, the Spanish side would eventually triumph on penalties. It was a scarcely believable situation, but after all of their early-season struggles Sevilla had booked their place in next season's Champions League group stage.

This record-extending seventh Europa League triumph should have provided Sevilla with an unlikely chance to reset. But it did not take long for further reports of unrest to surface. Indeed, less than a month after that famous night in Hungary it was reported that the entire first-team squad was up for sale as the club looked to deal with debts of up to €90 million (£77m/$98m).

These apparent financial problems did not prevent incoming sporting director Victor Orta getting his hands dirty in the summer, though. In total, eight new signings came through the door, including Loic Balde, Djibril Sow and Dodi Lukebakio.

However, by far and away the marquee arrival was Ramos. After flirting with Saudi Pro League teams all summer, the defender eventually opted for a sentimental return to his boyhood club, where he would earn considerably less than the riches he was offered in the Middle East.

But if Ramos thought he might receive some credit for this seemingly well-intentioned decision, he was mistaken. As the move was being confirmed, Biris Norte, Sevilla's most fervent ultra group, released a fiery statement regarding his return: "We want to express our rejection of those who proposed this transfer. We are not motivated by hatred or rancour, but by love and pride for our club, its history and its fans.

"We believe that the mere proposal of this signing was already a lack of respect for the values that have made us great, for the symbols and legends that have defended our crest, and for the thousands of Sevillistas who have suffered the scorn of this player in the past."

The two parties have a bitter history. Back in January 2017, Ramos scored a Panenka penalty for Real Madrid in front of the Biris Norte. The ultras had goaded him with chants of 'Sergio Ramos, hijo de puta (Sergio Ramos, son of a whore)' all game, and when the cheeky spot-kick hit the back of the net, the defender stared down his tormentors, while making a special effort to indicate that his beef was not with Sevilla's other supporters sat in the two stands flanking the one behind the goal.

And Ramos certainly did not allow the incident to spoil his dream return to Andalusia, explaining his reasons for coming back in an teary first press conference.

"I've always moved for emotions and sensations. When they gave me the opportunity to choose a project is because I really believe in it. It's the first time I've appeared since I left Paris, where I had the opportunity to continue but I thought the cycle was over," he revealed.

"It wasn't a matter of money or a contract, but a question of philosophy, mentality, feeling. At Sevilla we come together in these values.

"I had the opportunity to return home, do it as a leader with the hope of lifting a title. I wake up every day for this goal, I believe we can do it. We know it is very difficult, but the first thing we can do is believe in it."

Ramos would have been hoping for a dream return, but it's just not worked out like that. When he arrived, his side were rooted to the bottom of the table, having lost each of their opening three games. He seemed to make an instant impact, tightening up the defence in a 1-0 victory over Las Palmas before he missed the following week's draw with Osasuna and healthy win against Almeria.

And it's been pretty miserable ever since, with Sevilla tasting victory just once in the 15 games that followed those three points. On a personal level, there's been plenty of low points for Ramos along the way, too.

In a clash with the defender's old foes Barcelona back in September, his own goal condemned Sevilla to a 1-0 defeat, while he also saw red in a bad-tempered loss against Real Sociedad.

Ramos has also already worked with three head coaches since his return - turmoil which reflects the factionalism that has infested the boardroom for many years. First Mendilibar, architect of the miraculous Europa League, was dismissed following a 2-2 draw with Rayo Vallecano. Then his replacement, Diego Alonso, lasted just 67 days, as a dreadful run of just two wins in 13 matches across all competitions saw him sacked in December.

A key factor in Alonso's sacking was his failure to turn things around in Europe. After making an unexpected return to the Champions League group stages this season Sevilla royally fluffed their lines, blowing their chance to generate some much-needed extra revenue in the process.

Placed in a group alongside Arsenal, PSV Eindhoven and Lens, they would have had realistic hopes of progressing, but two draws in their opening two games against the latter pair left them with a mountain to climb.

And, as expected, it proved too much. Under Alonso's leadership they were beaten at home by Arsenal and than stunk up the Emirates in November, focussing far more on kicking lumps out of Bukayo Saka and co than trying to score - reflected in the fact they only managed one shot on goal all evening.

Ramos did at least go down swinging, with the defender netting in each of their losing efforts to PSV and Lens, but when the dust settled the standings made for depressing reading. Sevilla had managed to accrue just two points, even after being placed in a group with a mid-table Ligue 1 side and a Dutch team whose financial resources they dwarf.

There is at least one positive to Sevilla's Champions League exit: they can focus on their battle to avoid relegation. The latest manager to be handed the poisoned chalice is ex-Watford boss Quique Sanchez Flores; how long he lasts in the hot seat is another question altogether.

Things started well, with Sevilla winning his first game in charge against Granada, but the malaise has returned thereafter with a three-game winless run. After those results, he sounded pretty concerned, saying: "Things don't happen by chance in football. Everything is carefully assessed and analysed. We know why things happen. We are in defensive rebuild. The lack of structure in our attack is mirrored in our defence. Completely changing everything is very difficult."

Sanchez Flores may have had doubts, but victory over a strong Getafe side in the Copa del Rey round of 16 did provide some relief from a truly miserable season, as did the recent arrival of Manchester United loanee Hannibal Mejbri. It was a big game for Ramos in particular, with the club's X account making reference to him 'pocketing' the in-form Mason Greenwood at full-time.

More of the same is required to prevent this storybook return morphing into a nightmare, though with a trip to table-topping Girona up next, it might have to get worse before it gets better.