When Bruno Labbadia was announced as the new manager of Wolfsburg two months ago, supporters of the struggling Bundesliga club were under no illusions as to the reasons behind such as appointment: imperative survival. His arrival was announced less than 24 hours after Martin Schmidt’s resignation, with the club perched just a point above the relegation play-off spot. Labbadia, a coach that comes with a certain label attached- that of relegation-battle specialist, earning this tag from successful battles against the drop at Stuttgart and Hamburg respectively.

Six weeks later, and Wolfsburg remain in a parlous position after their 0-0 stalemate at home to Augsburg on Friday evening, an uninspiring encounter that resulted in a player sent off for either side in the second half.

It was the fourth time in five matches that Die Wölfe failed to score; but, more immediately, was seen as a golden opportunity missed to put daylight between themselves and Mainz in the relegation play-off position. Events on Monday evening proved just so- between the meeting of the two clubs directly below, Mainz and Freiburg. The former emerged victorious- be it in the midst of sheer VAR pandemonium, subsequently leapfrogging their opposition. The relegation play-off scenario is now tighter than ever with all three clubs’ sitting disconcertingly on 30 points- Freiburg currently occupy the play-off spot due to their most inferior goal difference.

Labbadia’s arrival in February failed to yield any instant upturn in fortunes or any sign of a “new manager bounce”, earning just one point from his first four games in charge, signifying the club’s decline and reaffirming the urgent need for an antidote.

Their 2-0 victory at Freiburg on 7 April was crucial, and tellingly, the triumph was the first time they had scored two goals in a game in 2018. There was, however, a distinct imbalance and lack of ideas to their play against Augsburg, despite an increased sense of purpose in the second period. But such a dearth in confidence and profligacy has been synonymous of the last two, turbulent campaigns at the Volkswagen Arena.

Their current stagnation feels light years away from the stable partnership enjoyed under sporting director Klaus Allofs and head coach Dieter Hecking- those heady heights of a Bundesliga runners-up spot, a DfB Pokal trophy and Champions League football. Both departed in the final quarter of 2016, precipitating a change in the club’s fortunes and, remarkably, since then, four head coaches have been and gone.

Aside from a concerning managerial turnover rate, Wolfsburg’s pratfalls from this season and last can also be attributed to an unconvincing use of the transfer market rather than lack of investment. Signings that include the highly-rated Spanish midfielder Ignacio Camacho, the £15m defender John Brooks- a record fee for an American footballer, Divock Origi and the January signing from Leverkusen- Admir Mehmedi, are all yet to make any kind of significant, consistent impact.

An ominous final quartet of fixtures lies ahead. Daunting away trips to Borussia Monchengladbach and European-chasing RB Lepzig will require much of the defensive qualities shown to achieve a hat-trick of clean sheets from recent encounters; whilst home games to Hamburg and Koln, both sides helplessly marooned at the foot of the Bundesliga, may well have seismic implications for Wolfsburg.