Chelsea have left the pitch dejected after their last two Premier League games. The gloss is coming off Frank Lampard's youthful side and people are looking for answers.
As is often the case, the first thought in January is to dream big about transfers but most of the top clubs in England have to face the reality that the player they want might not be attainable during the winter window.
Arsenal's defiant 10-man fightback from 1-0 and then 2-1 down to draw 2-2 at Stamford Bridge has left Chelsea fans hungrier than ever for new blood.
Lampard faced questions on the matter after Chelsea's latest disappointment but he seemed cautious about his side's chances of getting the calibre of player needed to improve his squad.
"I know where we need strengthening, but it is a difficult window for us," Lampard said at Stamford Bridge. "It is probably more of a short-term window.
"What this season has given us and continues to give us is answers on the pitch, and in areas where I think we can get better. That's for me to get right, but not so much in this window."
Lampard has previously called on the club to sign players to add goals and, on Tuesday, that need appeared to intensify after Tammy Abraham limped off with a freak injury .
Abraham strained to win the corner for Chelsea's second goal but, in doing so, clattered into the advertising hoardings.
He battled through the pain for the final 10 minutes of the match but may have done more harm than good for his long-term prospects of a rapid recovery, even if Lampard is hopeful he won't have to deal without his first-choice No.9 for an extended period of time.
“He had a bang on his ankle; he has had ice on it," Lampard said at Stamford Bridge. "I haven’t spoken to him yet, so I can’t really update you on that."
Getty Images
The striker's 15 goals mark him out as a special talent and the 22-year-old's unavailability would hit hard given the lack of alternatives up front.
Michy Batshuayi has been at Chelsea for three and a half years now but doubts remain over his ability to score on a regular basis and hold the ball up effectively.
And that's precisely why the Belgian is a regular substitute, while Abraham was handed the No. 9 shirt after returning to Chelsea after a prolific loan spell in the Championship with Aston Villa.
Indeed, Batshuayi has started just four times in the league across the tenures of Antonio Conte, Maurizio Sarri and now Lampard but made 42 appearances from the bench.
In his latest cameo, against Arsenal, he couldn't make an impact, which did nothing to boost his hopes of more game time.
Batshuayi has played just 140 league minutes under Lampard and even forgotten man Olivier Giroud, who is hoping to join Inter this month, has seen more action this season.
Such is the lack of faith in Abraham's understudies that Lampard has even tried using Christian Pulisic as a false 9, in the match against West Ham.
Paris Saint-Germain's Edinson Cavani is in Chelsea's sights. However, Atletico Madrid remain favourites to land the Uruguay international, who is keen on working with Diego Simeone.
If Chelsea don't get Cavani, then Blues fans will have to accept the real possibility of no new arrivals this month, with Lampard uninterested in signing players in any other positions right now.
That would be hard to accept for many supporters, given Chelsea were expected to be very active following the lifting of their transfer ban.
The main concern, though, would remain over Abraham's fitness. Even if this injury should not prove serious, Chelsea are clearly short on quality cover.
If the 22-year-old Abraham needs a rest or picks up a more damaging knock at a later date, who would replace him up top? The answer remains a mystery.
Tottenham are already struggling without Harry Kane, while Manchester United's season could be derailed in the absence of Marcus Rashford.
Chelsea, though, are even more poorly equipped to deal with a lengthy spell on the sidelines for their star striker.