Two games left. 180 minutes of football and Chelsea's season from hell is over. Onto the summer.
For fans it simply cannot come quick enough. 'End the season now' tweets will have started seriously surfacing shortly into January whilst even sarcastic cries for a Premier League cut-off, boycott or surrender were raised before that.
Chelsea have been in a state of horrendous limbo and purgatory for months now. The top four challenge never got back on track after a run of defeats in November, the embarrassing 'battle for the top half' has limped away and games against the third and fourth placed sides to finish don't look appetising.
READ NEXT: 'Secret' Thomas Tuchel Chelsea transfer plan backfires as Mauricio Pochettino set for £52m boos
There is no sugar-coating the year of doom. If it was to be summed up by a literary work then Lemony Snicket's 'A Series of Unfortunate Events' might best do it justice. The positive side to this is not only that Chelsea fans are soon to have near enough two months away from competitive action, but also that it cannot really get much worse.
This group, for all the faults - and there are plenty - are talented in the right areas and have promise. That isn't enough to win games but in Mauricio Pochettino there aren't many better coaches at changing mindsets and instilling fight into a group. After all, a team to get behind is simply all that is asked.
Frank Lampard's young squad of 2019/20 were far from perfect. They made big mistakes, played some horrendously naive football at times but very rarely lacked for effort, desire and intensity. They are, as Roy Keane would say, the jobs of the players. Run around a bit, foster an excitable atmosphere and develop a relationship.
When it comes to failed attackers of late, of which there have been countless, Timo Werner is fondly remembered for his continued workrate despite a seemingly inevitable mess of a cause. Kai Havertz, Hakim Ziyech, Alvaro Morata and Romelu Lukaku will be remembered less fondly. At least Havertz has a big goal to account for, the others have very little to put under the Chelsea section of their CVs.
So when it comes to Pochettino taking over there is plenty to be done but also a sense of unknown that is exciting. If Chelsea are closer to Tottenham of the past decade than they are to Paris Saint-Germain then there's a good chance that he can do a good job, here. What the Argentine doesn't fail to do it make a team fight. His sides have to be brave first and foremost.
Before winning tactical or technical battles they need to enter the pitch as warriors and that is what has been missing from Chelsea for too long. It's a big task in one pre-season, though. Having been without a joined up goal for much of this season, especially in 2023, here is what the club have already got in place to give him a slight advantage.
Playing the future
This isn't an unseen clip from Looper with Joseph Gordon-Levitt about to come out from the past and join up with the group, Chelsea have put some effort into giving players with a real chance of playing next season in the squad.
It perhaps hasn't been enough, still. Lewis Hall's two starts under Lampard have only come when both Ben Chilwell and Marc Cucurella were ruled out through injury, he wasn't in the squad for Bournemouth before that. England Under-20 teammate Carney Chukwuemeka isn't getting action, regardless.
They will be hopeful of more gametime in the last week of the season but it's a bit too little too late. Benoit Badiashile seemed to disappear at stages, too. His performances warranted more time on the pitch, now his injury looks set to keep him out of preparing properly for next year.
Noni Madueke has had ins and outs, partially due to sporadic form, an incohesive attack and a massive squad to please but his recent minutes were positive. Mykhailo Mudryk's general lack of consistent appearances has been questionable. Conor Gallagher, someone who may yet leave, has had a big role to play under Lampard, at least. He is one player that already appears to fit the bill for a Pochettino team.
There could have been a much bigger focus on the future for Lampard and Chelsea but there is also a sense of every little helps. Having signed so many of them in January it is effectively a six-month head start.
Banishing the demons
Hand-in-hand with playing some of the younger players, there has been a bigger shift in recent weeks towards sidelining the underperforming, overpaid and fully expendable stars of the past and the present. Although boos towards Lampard's decision to bring off Madueke against Bournemouth don't fully reflect that.
Pulisic has found himself away from the pitch, Ziyech is getting less gametime than previously as well. Albeit down to injury, Mateo Kovacic won't play again this season, neither will Kalidou Koulibaly. The first three are all top of the list to be on their way out this summer, Koulibaly less so but may still be off.
It means that minutes in games without pressure are not going to waste, at least not too much. There are favourites within the fanbase but in general there has been a change.
Havertz and Joao Felix are still sharing the striker duties but neither really fit the role anyway. Both of them could be entering their last week as a Chelsea player, there's not loads Lampard has been able to do to combat that. David Datro Fofana is raw and evidently too far from the thinking to be really afforded much opportunity.
Not caving in for the final two games and pushing the players further out the exit door is far from the worst Lampard could do, here.
Competitive spirit
It all comes back to what Pochettino is looking for in a team. The fight, resolve, determination to win and to run for the cause, for teammates and in order to impress, excite and give the fans something to cheer. Chelsea have been without this aligned goal for far too long.
Trying to foster the togetherness for such a big group is always a challenge but through injuries and approaching end of season relaxation, the group of stars that know they are pushing for something bigger have a chance to prove to Pochettino just why they should be involved.
If Lampard can do this for games against Manchester United and Newcastle, both teams that have plenty of reason to bring intensity and passion of their own to the table, then it will be a step in the right direction, at the very least.
READ NEXT:
Mauricio Pochettino handed early Chelsea transfer blow as agent reveals summer stance
Chelsea have £52m transfer advantage over Liverpool as agent reveals 'serious' bid
Chelsea already have advantage for £52m star that could unleash Enzo Fernandez in transfer repeat
Mauricio Pochettino transfer 'no-brainer' is clear for Chelsea after Barcelona contract admission
Frank Lampard sends Chelsea and Mauricio Pochettino worrying message in brutal Thiago Silva truth
