Hope turned to despair once more, as so often in England's World Cup campaigns – and what now for Roy Hodgson with a batch of unwelcome new records poised to arrive on his watch?
Faced with a Uruguay side that had little going for them beyond a genius in the number nine shirt, England were tactically inept and terminally naive in another 2-1 defeat.
The World Cup campaign is not over, Hodgson may proclaim, but history will tell you otherwise: no team has ever lost two World Cup group games and advanced.
No England team has ever lost their first two World Cup games either, and you have to go back to 1958 to find the last time England failed to get out of the first group stage.
No wonder the England players trooped off the Sao Paulo pitch with heads bowed at the final whistle, after a 90 minutes where, Wayne Rooney apart, the team had had a stinker.
England's heroic failure against Italy in Manaus had raised expectations, as well as some fears, that Hodgson's men should finally produce a World Cup performance and result to be proud of.
It has been a dozen years since England have contrived to achieve that: not since 2002 when victories over Argentina and Denmark promised a glorious future for a golden generation that never quite materialised.
There was also the feeling that Uruguay could be there for the taking, having been humiliated 3-1 by Costa Rica and missing injured skipper Diego Lugano plus the suspended Maxi Pereira.
The South Americans had Luis Suarez back of course, but after that match in Manaus where England were so brimming with vigour, and with the Liverpool striker only just back from a knee op, surely there was only going to be one winner?
Except that England's players took their instructions to attack relentlessly too literally: it was all horribly frantic, constantly disjointed and low in terms of skill levels.
Going forward, England were hasty while in defence they were hesitant. Joe Hart looked uncharacteristically nervous in goal, while the outfield England players were headless chickens clad in white, running here, there and everywhere but too often to little purpose.
Uruguay were not much cop themselves, especially compared to Italy, but were ruthless when necessary, dirty when they thought they could get away with it, and had that man Suarez as a constant, nagging and brilliant presence.
Two excellent goals by Suarez were enough to do for England, the first an outstanding header after being superbly picked out by Edinson Cavani, despite the Uruguayans being outnumbered by six to two.
The second was a rasping, devilish strike that soared past Hart into the back of the net after England failed to deal with a route one ball straight from a goalkeeper's kick.
That came after Rooney, playing in his favoured central role, had finally broken his World Cup hoo-doo to pull the scores level.
Rooney had a far better game than in Manaus but until that long-awaited goal must have thought he was cursed: a wicked free-kick bending a whisker wide with Fernando Muslera in the Uruguay goal rooted to the spot, a header that crashed against the angle of bar and post from point-blank range, and a chance from 10 yards that looked odds on but was too close to the keeper.
The rest of the team who had impressed against Italy found themselves suffering by comparison.Raheem Sterling buzzed around but showed little composure, while Daniel Sturridge's touch appeared to have deserted him.
Steven Gerrard looked off the pace and played an unfortunate role in both Uruguay's goals, while Jordan Henderson seemed out of his depth.
England's fate is out of their hands now but this World Cup is already looking disastrous. As John Cleese said, I can take the despair – it's the hope I can't stand.
