Glenn Hoddle ripped into Chelsea as the Blues once more faltered at Stamford Bridge. In the process of losing 2-0 against Brentford, handing the visitors a first win in six games, Frank Lampard lost his fifth straight game as interim manager, failing to score for the fourth time in that run.
It's a period of results that continues on from the end of the Graham Potter reign that leaves the Blues winless in eight and with just two open play goals in that time. Since the turn of the year there have been just two league wins and both came against sides in the bottom five.
As well as demonstrating the all round mess at the club, Lampard's decision to play without a recognised striker - fielding Raheem Sterling as the only orthodox attacker - proved a poor one. Chelsea were once again toothless in the first half and found themselves 1-0 down thanks to a Cesar Azpilicueta own goal.
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The Spaniard, as if to compound the misery, was playing in his first game since February. That was a game that Chelsea lost 2-0 to Southampton; since then they have picked up eight points from a possible 24.
The game once more saw N'Golo Kante and Conor Gallagher preferred to the myriad of expensive attackers purchased in the last 12 months but they couldn't make the clinical difference needed at SW6. It lead to a disbelieving Hoddle to sum up the same old issues during the break.
"They're bereft of ideas," he told BT Sport. "They're playing in front of Brentford. There's no runners in behind, we said about no centre forward, well no-one is there.
"If other people are arriving into the box and you're seeing that, there's no danger. The amount of times they've had to come back and play square and across.
"Brentford, the back three are going 'this is the easiest game we've had all season here, they're not turning us, they're not causing us any problems'.
"Chelsea have got to change it, they've got to change the system and the personnel."
Lampard did turn to his bench, bringing on Mykhailo Mudryk and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The pair had an impact as the latter managed to produce two high quality chances in front of goal but fluffed his lines - perhaps not a surprise given his lack of match action - but ultimately couldn't affect the outcome of the game.
By the time Bryan Mbeumo added the second, the inevitable feeling of failure had already spread and Chelsea, despite facing just one shot on target, fell to a 2-0 loss. Brentford now have a 100% record at Stamford Bridge in league fixtures and are, despite having nothing to play for, a team that represents everything Chelsea aren't.
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