If Graham Potter has much time to plan ahead in his whirlwind start to life as Chelsea manager then there's one area that will be pressing him the most.
In terms of the squad he has inherited, the clearest matter to sort out during the weeks off when players are international duty will be a decision as to how he sees the shape of his midfield progressing in the short and long-term future.
During his first match in-charge, which is not something to take as gospel that it will continue, Potter used Jorginho as a deep base and had Mateo Kovacic and Mason Mount ahead of him as box-to-box No.8s. It was a set up not used specifically by Thomas Tuchel although the personnel remained similar.
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There won't be much time for Potter to think about where to go from here though, as he will now be without his first choice three. Conor Gallagher, an impressive second half substitute against RB Salzburg, will also be missing as he goes on England Under-21s duty. N'Golo Kante is on the periphery with an ongoing injury that has ruled him out for five matches already.
For Potter, who will have just over one month when his team returns to Premier League action to get the season going before the winter World Cup takes centre-stage, has a very small and defined period in which to decide what the midfield will look like for the rest of the season and beyond.
Of the current group, none of Kante, Kovacic, Jorginho or on-loan signing Denis Zakaria - yet to play a minute - are contracted past July 2023. It is not the ideal building block for Potter who doesn't even have match footage at Chelsea of Zakaria to watch whilst making initial judgements.
With the news that Barcelona are keen to sign Jorginho on a free contract should his deal not be renewed, there is an added layer of complication to the decision making process. Not only is Kante extremely valuable but he is also playing less than 50% of matches. Jorginho has clear benefits as a player to Chelsea but also has flaws which need to be accounted for. How will Potter deal with these initially? What will it mean for the future? And will it be impacted by the other options available?
Ultimately Potter is the only man that can answer these questions, but is on a countdown that is moving even quicker than first imagined. By the time Chelsea regroup after the World Cup the January transfer window will be on the horizon and both Kante and Jorginho will be able to negotiate moves away for free.
Potter doesn't have long to make key short and long-term decisions that will become a foundation for his own Chelsea future, all the while he needs to best assess and deploy these players to get results here and now.
One player that might benefit from it all, and football.london understands he is making a mark following a behind-closed-doors friendly against Brighton, is Carney Chukwuemeka. The 18-year-old provides an option for Potter if he is willing to put his faith in such a young talent. If he doesn't then it may yet hinder Chelsea's midfield issues for longer as development will be slowed, and the England Under-19s international could be relied on if the Jorginho and Kante issues aren't resolved swiftly.
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