More domestic misery for Basel, who not only failed to challenge Young Boys for the title for a third consecutive time, but also finished lower than their usual second-placed finish, having been outperformed by St.Gallen.
The Red-Blues did show glimpses of promise, having performed well in several matches against the top two, but just lacked consistency against the lesser sides to give themselves a chance of battling for the title.
Their saving grace has certainly been their European run - they beat PSV before suffering a shock defeat to LASK in Champions League qualifying, but performed superbly in the Europa League, having reached the last eight, which was their best continental run since 2013.
They also remain in the Swiss Cup and will have a chance to salvage their season by winning that competition.
However, there is little doubt that, overall, there is a lot of work to be done. Veterans Fabian Frei, Taulant Xhaka and Valentin Stocker were all among Basel's best performers of this season, which can only be worrying looking at the big picture.
What is clear is that Basel currently simply do not have the depth to push for the title and will be hoping to strengthen during the short window ahead.
