The FA Cup final defeat to Arsenal will leave Chelsea boss Frank Lampard and his staff with plenty to think about before the start of next season.
There is, of course, a trip to Bayern Munich in the Champions League still to come. But with the Blues 3-0 down after the last-16 first leg, the match at the Allianz Arena is likely to be the club's last of the 2019/20 campaign.
And while it will be important for staff and players alike to have some much-needed time off after such an exhausting season, Chelsea have serious business to attend to before the 2020/21 domestic season starts in six weeks.
In a strange way, defeat on Saturday may have given Lampard the proof he needs in order to push for more signings this summer.
Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech have already joined the club but further reinforcements elsewhere will be needed to help the Blues push for success next season.
Starting 38-year-old Willy Caballero was probably the final nail in the coffin of Kepa Arrizabalaga’s Chelsea hopes which shows the need for a goalkeeper. But, past that, defeat to Arsenal showed how fragile the Blues can be in midfield.
The 3-4-3 system, which Lampard has used at different points throughout the season, saw Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic partnered in midfield. Arsenal mirrored the Chelsea set-up and therefore it provided good insight into how well both midfield combinations can operate.
From a defensive perspective, both midfields conceded opportunities. But the way in which Chelsea did so in the lead up to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s second goal highlighted a recurring theme.
As we see below, image via WyScout, both Kovacic and Jorginho allow space for Hector Bellerin to advance towards the Chelsea back three with a sizeable gap in the middle of the pitch.
Bellerin’s pace shows how the right-back is able to advance into the space but the reaction from the Chelsea midfield is most telling.
Neither Jorginho nor Kovacic stop the run of the Arsenal player who is able to get at the back three of Chelsea and create an opportunity in the final third.
From Lampard’s perspective, he would have been disappointed at Bellerin being able to make that run so freely but the fact that Kovacic was already on a yellow card limited his ability to stop the attacking phase.
Nevertheless, both the positioning and lack of defensive engagement from the midfield pair backs up the numbers which show why Chelsea need further reinforcements to prevent such easy penetration from the opposition.
Throughout the 2019/20 Premier League campaign, both Jorginho (0.92) and Kovacic (0.8) ranked outside the top 150 players for fouls committed per 90 minutes.
While the concept of frequently fouling isn’t the most attractive trait, it is one necessary for preventing the opposition chances in the final third.
Manchester City’s Fernandinho, for instance, has become an expert at that in recent years and Pep Guardiola’s side are generally more adept at fouling the opposition before they are able to get at a relatively weak defence when it comes to raw defensive qualities.
Chelsea’s defensive fragilities have been on show several times this season and Antonio Rudiger’s half-hearted attempt to stop Bellerin on Saturday only added to that case.
Therefore, a competent defensive midfielder should be somewhere towards the top of Lampard’s transfer priority to list especially considering N’Golo Kante’s struggles with injuries this season.
Declan Rice presents an interesting option considering his promising performances in a faltering West Ham side over the last few years.
His defensive security could certainly add an element that the Blues’ midfield was missing on Saturday and has done throughout the 2019/20 campaign.
All statistics used via Wyscout
