Chelsea’s season has reached a new low - the point where many fans have stopped caring.
The Blues came out to a flat Stamford Bridge after the defeat to Real Madrid last week all but ended the season in the eyes of many supporters.
When ‘The Liquidator’, one of Chelsea’s anthems, blared out across the PA system ahead of kick-off, many seats were unfilled and, perhaps rightly, the fans that did turn up looked to their players to lift them.
Frank Lampard, unfortunately, didn’t make that happen. He picked a defensive team when the brow-beaten supporters needed something to cling on to.
The caretaker manager lined up with the same 3-5-2 formation that put Madrid under some discomfort eight days ago despite the 4-0 aggregate defeat.
The respect shown to the European champions that night perhaps didn’t need to be shown at home to Brentford, a team without a win in six matches.
In fact, with Cesar Azpilicueta drafted in for an injured Reece James, his lineup was even more defensive than the one used in the Champions League.
There was some logic to Lampard's team selection as he looked for continuity, fitness and fighting spirit. However, Chelsea's crowd needed some entertainment.
Brentford had 19-goal striker Ivan Toney leading the line, while Chelsea had just one forward and only 10 goals this season in their team.
After being booed off at half-time, Lampard seemed to acknowledge his error. He took off both Azpilicueta, who conceded an own goal, and makeshift striker Conor Gallagher.
On went Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who immediately transformed the game and offered a rare focal point in attack, and £89million winger Mykhailo Mudryk.
It felt like the Blues remembered that they signed a striker in the summer after finding Aubameyang down the back of a sofa at Cobham this week.
He attempted overhead kicks, ran at players, shot at every opportunity and did what a striker likes to do. Unfortunately, having been in exile for three-and-a-half months, he also looked rusty.
Unfortunately, even with Noni Madueke and Joao Felix coming on later on, it would be Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo who sealed victory from the bench.
Even Chelsea’s most hardened supporters had had enough at this stage, streaming out of the stadium. There were yet more boos on the final whistle but most of the squad did an apologetic lap of honour for those who did remain.
Aubameyang, Madueke, Ben Chilwell and Trevoh Chalobah offered their match-worn shirts to some of the young fans.
This could be a historically bad season for Chelsea, who look set to finish below both Fulham and Brentford, having not beaten either of their local rivals home or away.
Lampard rightly picked a team that fights but he must also give his battered and bruised crowd some entertainment in his last six matches.
