In the black and white world of football social media, Liverpool's transfer deadline day signings were interpreted as an inevitable 'triumph'.
That is the way of things of course, fans even want to win the transfer window, never mind actual trophies. So the Reds' Sporting Director Michael Edwards was portrayed as a 'transfer guru' and his dealings declared 'another masterclass'.
The hype reached peak ridiculous when KFC, rather surreally tweeted to suggest Edwards was good enough to steal their secret recipe.
The reality of January for Liverpool though, is very different, as an abject performance against Brighton illustrated only too painfully. 68 Premier League games unbeaten, and then two defeats come along within a fortnight, the second where they were completely outplayed by a team rooted towards the foot of the table.
© POOL/AFP via Getty ImagesLiverpool's transfer business in January has laid bare their problems
It would be heresy to suggest it in some circles, but a masterclass would have been to bring in two new defenders on January 1, acknowledging a fact that Jurgen Klopp has been suggesting for some weeks now - injuries to his centre halves have had devastating impact throughout the team.
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Klopp will be ridiculed for saying his team were 'mentally fatigued' against Brighton. Managers always are when they reach for those excuses. But he has a point. The knock on effect from injuries to Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip has been to deplete the rest of the side.
It was noticeable in the lack of energy against Brighton from Liverpool's two most reliably ebullient players, Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold. Klopp said definitively in pre-season both would be rested regularly during this campaign.
He hasn't though, because he can't.the defence has been in too much turmoil. He can't play inexperienced full backs when he has two midfielders at centre half, or in Nat Phillips and Rhys Williams, central defenders who have less than 30 senior appearances between them in their entire careers.
So Robertson has played 30 of 32 Liverpool games this season, even playing in the cups, where he would automatically be rested. Alexander-Arnold has played every game when he's not been injured. Both looked exhausted against Brighton.
© Getty ImagesAndy Robertson has played 30 of Liverpool's 32 fixtures this season
It is not just defence either. Injuries have given Klopp no room to rotate the players who are the last ones standing. Last season, the title winning season, it is conveniently forgotten that Liverpool had 23 players who made double figure appearances. That's two teams.
And they had 20 players who made 15 appearances or more. So everyone remembers the stars, but the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain played 43 games last season, and Divock Origi made 42 appearances.
Now though, Klopp must basically pick any of his first team automatic choices when they are fit. So Gini Wijnaldum has played 30 of 32 matches, and even appeared in the Carabao Cup. Same with Salah, Firmino and Mane.
Fabinho has played in every game he's been fit for, so has Jordan Henderson. Both being used at centre half has meant Wijnaldum must play every match, and more recently Thiago and James Milner too. All three look shattered against Brighton.
Klopp has half his recognised first team injured, at any one time, so the rest of that team must play to retain a semblance of continuity and rhythm. It also means that when players like Origi or Oxlade-Chamberlain come in, they lack rhythm.
© Pool via REUTERSLiverpool's hopes of retaining their title are dwindling
They are also missing the threat real central defenders bring at set pieces - with van Dijk a genuine goalscoring target in the opposition box. For the past three seasons, Liverpool have been in the top three goalscorers from set pieces in the Premier League. This season they are nowhere.
There is also a more fundamental problem. No height at centre back means you must go for your tallest players elsewhere, which again limits selection options, as Klopp admitted when he said he didn't pick Taki Minamino more.
Klopp knew all this when Gomez was injured. He was aware of the impact, and he made clear that an experienced central defender was required, as soon as the window opened.
Instead, because of financial constraints - understandable of course, in a global pandemic with devastating economic impact - they chose the cheapest option, which was to wait until deadline day to try and force prices down, and then bring in players with little or no fee attached.
That was sensible in terms of finance, but not onfield impact. Ozan Kabak is 20 years old. Even a massively experienced defender coming in from overseas takes time to settle, especially when coming into an unsettled team. So a kid will need even more time.
The same goes for a player like Ben Davies, taking what is these days a massive step up from the Championship. And both players are coming into a system that demands so much of centre halves, given how high up the pitch they must play.
So giving them time would have been the masterclass. Bringing in centre halves on January 1 would have seen them have less injury problems in January, and been able to rotate more against Burnley, Brighton and Southampton, to reduce the obvious fatigue seen in all three games.
Those nine points lost in those three games are the difference between fourth place and top in the current Premier League table.
They are the difference between going into the game with Manchester City knowing it is a title fight, and entering it as Liverpool will do this weekend, believing they need a result simply to ensure they stay in the argument for the top four.
On Sunday, if Fabinho is fit he will almost certainly partner Henderson in the centre of defence. So the problems will persist until the new signings are ready to step up. That could be weeks. And by then the title will be long gone.
January 1 would have been the masterclass that had Klopp licking his fingers, not just Colonel Sanders.