Chelsea's squad took another injury battering against Nottingham Forest as they were left without N'Golo Kante and Mateo Kovacic by full-time of the 2-2 draw.
Kante had been sidelined from the start with a groin strain that is now set to see him miss the rest of the season whilst his Croatian teammate was taken off in the first half. He was replaced by Ruben Loftus-Cheek in midfield, leaving no further orthodox central players in the squad - though Lewis Hall tends to play there for the academy sides.
"I don't know. I know he had a bit of an issue going into the game," Frank Lampard admitted afterwards, "It was clear yesterday in training. I spoke to him before to see how it went. I haven't followed it up since the game to be honest. We hope he's OK."
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It came as a double blow for Lampard who had already had to change the team that beat Bournemouth last week. "We lost N'Golo in training yesterday," he said before the match. "He felt something in his groin. So that's probably a couple of weeks and we know what that means pretty much. We just have to keep going."
It all but rules the Frenchman out for the rest of the season and given the lack of jeopardy on the final three league games, Kovacic may well be joining him in watching on from the sidelines. The Blues can still have a big say in the title race and top four battle, facing both Manchester clubs and Newcastle but, for once, have nothing tangible riding on their own results.
It is perhaps a surprise then that Kovacic, who football.london understands will be allowed to leave the club this summer, was risked at all. Chelsea have Carney Chukwuemeka in their squad and also Loftus-Cheek but neither have received much, if any, first-team attention from Lampard during his interim period.
The bottom line is that Kovacic and Kante are just two of an already growing list of players not likely to feature in the last three weeks. Mason Mount and Reece James are already recovering from longer-term knocks of their own and may well be saved for next year even if they do come back to a match-ready state.
Marc Cucurella and Kalidou Koulibaly are in the same camp. Armando Broja has been out of action since December and won't be available until pre-season at the earliest. That's already six players unlikely to feature again in a blue shirt this season but there are certainly more that may have played their last game for the club overall.
Due to the mass exodus in the summer which is expected to kick off sharply after the announcement and appointment of a new manager - Mauricio Pochettino is still the top dog for this despite the delays - it could leave a group of even more players without the chance to say a final farewell.
Kovacic, as mentioned, is one that could leave with Bayern Munich and Manchester City both admirers of him. Kante is also yet to renew his contract despite showing signs of being on board with the ongoing project and change at the club. If his latest injury continues on into the summer it isn't feasible that he or Chelsea have second thoughts over a new deal.
Mount is in the same camp, albeit with an extra year to see out. He is still expected to make a decisive choice on his future this summer, though. The 24-year-old will either be sold in the next window or will commit himself to his boyhood side. That one is still up in the air.
Elsewhere, there is a chance that one of Kepa Arrizabalaga or Edouard Mendy exit Stamford Bridge with neither of them in stellar form or able to convince many that they are in a position to demand being the out-and-outnumber one. Mendy started and played against Forest but it has been Kepa for much of this season in action.
Should Lampard stick with the player he signed in 2020 then Kepa may have played his last minutes. Club captain Cesar Azpilicueta was dropped from the team in favour of Trevoh Chalobah against Bournemouth and his struggle with pace, physicality and tempo have seen him isolated in the side. He still has 12 months left to run but is another that won't be stopped from moving on.
Koulibaly might be one to monitor with potential centre-back recruits emerging and a lacklustre first year in English football coming to an end. It's not out of the equation that he is moved on, potentially back to Italy, before playing another competitive match for the club. The same can be said for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
His deadline day arrival from Barcelona has been one of the biggest disasters in a season full of them. His recent exile from the squad is reportedly not only down to a barren spell in front of goal - only hampered by his inconsistent minutes - but also a lofty appearance bonus. Whether Chelsea can get a fee for him or not, the Gabon international's brief time at SW6 is all but over.
Denis Zakaria is in the same boat. He has hardly featured since injury ruled him out from Febraury. Impressive loan cameos did open up the chance of his £26m option to buy being triggered but those have been too far and few between. He doesn't look to be in the mix for any minutes in the last three games.
Christian Pulisic is a more high-profile name on this list but again, due to the forward options and Lampard's choice to look elsewhere, it's not unreasonable to suggest his time is up and may already have run its course. He was once again left on the bench against Forest. Hakim Ziyech has been a substitute in the past two matches and is closer to first-team action, otherwise he would be another player that might have had their last dance.
It not only proves how tough the injuries have been on Chelsea this year but also just how much work is needed over the summer.
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