It's two weeks until the Premier League returns and Graham Potter has now had the same amount of time beginning to get his Chelsea side up to speed as the World Cup continues in Qatar.
Monday sees the Blues squad that travelled to Abu Dhabi and record a narrow defeat to Aston Villa return to the UK ahead of training on Wednesday, when Chelsea's international stars who made early exits from Qatar 2022 are set to arrive at Cobham.
Potter and his coaching staff have had somewhat of a makeshift squad since their return, with no shortage of development players making up the numbers. However, the time has remained productive for the group as they build up to their return to action against Bournemouth later in December, with 12 academy players experiencing first team life for an extended period for the first time.
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The trip even appears to have offered Gabriel Slonina an opportunity to spend time with the team, despite Marcus Bettinelli, Kepa Arrizabalaga and Eddie Beach being the only named goalkeepers in the squad.
The American stopper, who signed in the summer before returning on loan to Chicago Fire, could be seen leaving the team bus and following Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang into the Al Nahyan Stadium ahead of the match against Villa.
With that said, football.london takes a look at what we learned from Sunday's defeat and beyond.
Injuries moving in the right direction
Chelsea have had plenty of injury problems since Potter arrived at Stamford Bridge, and while none of those players undergoing rehabilitation in the last month or so were able to make their return against Aston Villa, it seems progress is on the right track.
Reece James, Wesley Fofana and Carney Chukwuemeka all stepped up their training involvment, while Ben Chilwell, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and N'Golo Kante all made the trip to the Middle East. Chelsea's boss seems positive about the time remaining before the season resumes.
He said: "The lads that have been injured have had a bit more time training and they’ve stepped up their rehab so that’s good, they’re getting closer. We’ve got a full week’s training when we get back and then we have a friendly the following week so that will be good. There’s a few more guys coming back from the World Cup so it’s moving nicely.
"We’ll be able to have a few more players back in full training with us. Reece James has moved forward, Wesley Fofana is moving forward, Carney Chukwuemeka is moving forward so that’s positive. Hopefully Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ben Chilwell can also take a step forward in their rehab next week so we’re optimistic about that."
It still seems like it will be close for the group to be match-ready, perhaps part of the reason why Chelsea were cautious when Trevoh Chalobah did not feature on Sunday despite being named in the starting lineup. On the whole, everything is moving in the right direction however.
Formation hint and Lewis Hall's position
Lewis Hall's performances were some of the brightest sparks of Chelsea's latter weeks of football before the pause for the World Cup. The 18-year-old academy star impressed many with outings against Manchester City and Newcastle at wing-back.
Regardless of numbers, the youngster's first team involvement came as no surprise in the last fortnight but his start in the centre of midfield may have raised a few eyebrows against Aston Villa. It's a position that is Hall's preferred one, and where he has predominantly featured for the development squad this term.
However, with Chilwell's continued recovery from injury, and the fact left-sided defenders Zak Sturge and Dylan Williams left at home when their teammates travelled to Abu Dhabi, it seems Hall was primed to continue in his position in defence along with Marc Cucurella.
Potter opted to play 4-3-3 against the Villans, the system that has been hinted will be Chelsea's preference when the season resumes. While the 47-year-old's selection of players may have forced certain considerations, having the likes of Dion Rankine available to play at wing-back on the right and a number of central defenders, would have ensured a system with three defenders would have been an option.
Omari Hutchinson finally starts
There's certainly been a clamour in the fanbase to see Omari Hutchinson make a first team appearance since he was named in Chelsea's squad against Brighton in October. The winger has enjoyed an outstanding season with the Blues' development squad, and the 19-year-old finally received his opportunity against Unai Emery's side.
The stakes may have been lower given the status of the Aston Villa match but Hutchinson made sure to leave an impact. The former Arsenal academy star wasted little time showing his attacking intention and was unfortunate not to see his strike hit the back of the net when he hit the post after beating Lucas Digne.
Hutchinson's display drew comments from teammates such as James and Fofana with the former saying: "Balla. If you don't know get to know."
Potter was also impressed with what he saw. He said: "He was really good, dangerous and asked a question all the time. Throughout the game he showed his quality but he wasn’t the only one. It was a spirited performance with a lot of young players, so it was good."
Pressure ramps up on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
While Chelsea's training has proved productive, Armando Broja's injury in the opening half against Aston Villa is a very clear negative. The young striker was left crying out in pain and clutching his knee after getting caught between a player and the ground and if the issue is as serious as it looked it will come as a blow to Potter.
An injury to Broja will leave Aubameyang as the Blues' only fit senior striker, and while the 33-year-old has shown promise in his three goals this term, he would hope to have found better form. The former Gabon international started out wide in the Al Wahda Challenge Cup match, and moved central when Broja was substituted but will hope to have more impact in the Premier League.
Aubameyang will be the prime candidate to start against Bournmouth given his extended time to work under Potter but will likely have to compete with Kai Havertz for a role at the focal point of Chelsea's attack.
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