Wednesday's Carabao Cup exit at the hands of Arsenal was a disappointing night for everyone connected with Chelsea. A performance that started brightly petered out after half-time to leave many scratching their heads as to how such a clearly superior side could once again fail to defeat their London rivals.
In basic terms, the game was decided by two lucky goals from Arsenal. A double ricochet resulted in their equaliser and an unwitting deflection off Antonio Rudiger turned a harmless cross from Alexandre Lacazette into a chance that Granit Xhaka couldn't miss. Fortune certainly wasn't smiling on Chelsea, especially when factoring in the enforced first-half withdrawal of the impressive Willian. But in truth, the match was lost in the final half-hour when Chelsea were unable to muster any kind of meaningful response after falling behind.
In the immediate aftermath of the 2-1 defeat, Antonio Conte wasted little time in suggesting that it was the lack of options on the bench that was to blame. He had a point. When Willian tweaked his hamstring, the only player of similar style he could call upon was Ross Barkley. In a few months' time, the England international should be a more than adequate replacement but having not played since last May, this was not the ideal situation in which to make his Chelsea debut.
Ultimately, there were no game-changers that Conte could deploy in the second half. Once Michy Batshuayi was introduced as a last throw of the dice, it meant that the dynamic front three of Eden Hazard, Willian and Pedro Rodriguez had unsympathetically morphed into Hazard playing alongside two extremely rusty individuals.
This situation had occurred ostensibly due to injuries to Alvaro Morata and Cesc Fabregas, two players who would certainly have either started or played a significant part from the bench. The underlying point that Conte was trying to make, however, was that there were no like-for-like replacements to summon in their absence. Once again, the manager had brought Chelsea's recruitment activity into the firing line.
There has to be some sympathy for Conte, who feels bereft of cover for those two vitally important players. Even when Fabregas doesn't start matches, he is always a serious weapon that can be brought on to either change a game or control it. Morata might have had a fallow period in front of goal lately but his all-round contribution is considerable.
Danny Drinkwater is no Fabregas, but he can replicate some of his traits while providing defensive ballast. His problem is that he has been dogged by injuries all season and is yet to find his feet in a Chelsea shirt. Batshuayi can point to a lack of game time for his travails but it can't hide the fact that his linking with teammates, ability to hold the ball or provide a reference point for the attack is woefully lacking. The Belgium international is lethal in the penalty box, which is why he can be dangerous when thrown on late in search of a goal, but he is less than useful when a centre-forward is required to lead the line effectively for 90 minutes.
It is clear that Conte needs cover in those positions as well as at left wing-back where Marcos Alonso carries almost the entire workload. While it might be admirable that Chelsea chose not to pay the exorbitant sums that Juventus quoted them for Alex Sandro in the summer, that there were no other targets pursued is baffling.
But the manager also has to take his share of the blame. For starters, Conte's record against Arsenal has been little short of dreadful. In eight meetings he has just one victory with four defeats and three draws. Contrast this to the 31 previous meetings before he was appointed in which Chelsea were victorious 18 times and beaten on just five occasions. This downturn in results cannot simply be coincidental, but symptomatic of a manager who has struggled to find a way to beat what has perhaps been the weakest Arsenal team since the turn of the millennium.
The absence of Charly Musonda from the substitutes' bench at the Emirates is also a mystery. After his bright cameo at Brighton where his delicious pass created the fourth goal for Victor Moses, he should have been the obvious choice to replace Willian instead of Barkley. There has been no report of an injury and he wasn't involved with the Chelsea U-21's in their EFL Trophy clash with Exeter on Tuesday, so Musonda's non-selection is baffling, not least considering Conte's post-match complaints.
If the prospective moves for Roma pair Edin Dzeko and Emerson Palmieri are completed some of Conte's ire should be assuaged though he might be forgiven for thinking that it was all happening a bit too late. Even so, it might help if he placed as much faith in those on the fringes of his team as he himself expects to receive from those in charge of transfers. The club needs to be united but at the moment not everyone seems to be pulling in the same direction.