Real Madrid's slide has rolled on through two trophyless years and three different managers. Florentino Perez finally turned back to Jose Mourinho, hoping the Portuguese could drag the club back into the fight for silverware.
His start has fallen well short of expectations. Defeat to Atletico Madrid in the capital derby only sharpened the criticism of where this team sits under Mourinho.
Gerard Pique pounced. The former Barcelona defender, never shy about his loyalty to the Catalan club, posted a video on his official TikTok account digging up memories from 2010 to mock the old rivals.
He ran through three moments from that year, a sarcastic nod to the current plight of Real Madrid and Mourinho:
Spain, World Cup champions
Mourinho delivers a superb season in La Liga
Barcelona play "like gods"
The jibe landed with perfect timing. Mourinho's La Liga return has coincided with Real Madrid's decline, and Pique lined it up against 2010, when Barcelona were at the very peak of their brilliance.