When Huddersfield Town registered a thumping 4-1 win at Watford on December 16, Premier League survival seemed within their grasp.
It marked the Terriers' first away victory of the season and lifted them up to 11th in the table on 21 points.
For a club plying their trade in the top flight for the first time since 1972, it was another chapter in the fairytale being penned by charismatic German boss David Wagner.
“We are in the race to stay up and nobody thought we would be - this is what makes us happy,” said Wagner, grinning from ear to ear, after the Vicarage Road masterclass.
“You need 12 wins I believe to stay up and we have six.”
Almost two months on, Huddersfield have failed to win another league encounter in a damaging run which has seen them drop like a stone.
Their dream campaign is threatening to descend into a waking nightmare.
Last weekend’s 2-0 defeat at Manchester United sent Wagner’s men into the relegation zone for the first time this season.
The people of Huddersfield are concerned – and with good reason.
For much of the first half of the campaign, the Terriers appeared too good to go down.
In recent weeks, they have looked too bad to stay up.
Bournemouth are the visitors to the John Smith’s Stadium on Sunday lunchtime and Wagner’s side are desperate for a victory to reignite their fortunes.
Huddersfield have failed to win in eight league encounters since dismantling the Hornets just before Christmas, although they go into this weekend’s clash buoyed by a 4-1 FA Cup fourth-round replay win at Birmingham in midweek.
Wagner said on Friday: “We said at Old Trafford last week ‘now our season starts, now all together we have to stand up and fight.’
“The next 12 games in the Premier League gives everyone the opportunity to fight and shine.
“It is always difficult to collect points against the top six and, although we have to be on our very best, we have a better chance against Bournemouth.
“This is the first time we are playing a side in and around us – we know what is in front of us and what we have to do.
“We have always been aware we have had to fight for Premier League survival from day one.
“But we all together have to fight to stay up; this is everyone from the players to the whole town who has to fight.
“We have to stay together, stick together, fight and believe.”
After Bournemouth's visit, Huddersfield face upcoming encounters with relegation rivals Swansea, Crystal Palace, Newcastle and Brighton.
The sequence represents a huge chance to defy the odds and secure another season of Premier League football.
Positivity drips from Wagner, who was told at the start of the season by chairman Dean Hoyle that his job was safe even if Huddersfield fail to beat the drop.
That is how highly regarded Wagner is, but relegation would not sit well on his burgeoning CV.
The 46-year-old added: “We can’t wait to start this period of games; we have the feeling there is only one direction now and that is to try to collect points and move up the table.
“There is no pressure in being in the bottom three – it is only positive as we can only go forward and upwards.
“We are in a position where we can chase; we can be totally fearless with freedom.”
