Chelsea 0-1 AFC Bournemouth: 5 Talking Points and Tactical Analysis | Premier League 2019-20

1. Honeymoon period firmly over for Lampard's Chelsea

It's a testing time for Lampard - festive schedule in full swing - and questions over transfers set to intensify

Four defeats in their last five Premier League games and suddenly Frank Lampard's honeymoon period as Chelsea boss is firmly over. The Blues battled hard to secure their last-16 Champions League berth in midweek, but they have largely lacked consistency in recent weeks and this result emphasises the problems in hand.

You could see the discontent etched across Lampard's face as he watched his side struggle to truly break down a Bournemouth backline that have conceded eleven goals in their last five games but his job doesn't get any easier from this point forward.

Having received plaudits aplenty for the way he has integrated fearless youngsters into his first-team plans, it's natural to expect a performance dip from them as their hectic schedule takes a physical toll and reduces productivity. Despite his ability, Mount remains a divisive figure among some fans, while Pulisic continues mixing moments of brilliance with frustration.

Since beating Crystal Palace on November 9, Abraham has two goals in six starts (across all competitions) while there's seemingly inadequate competition for the centre-forward role with Michy Batshuayi struggling to regularly feature and Olivier Giroud out of the picture. A common criticism of Lampard is that substitutions are often questionable - replacing the wrong players - whilst he often takes too long to change things when alterations are needed.

He's got a reunion with former boss Jose Mourinho next week at Tottenham before fixtures against Southampton and Arsenal await between now and the start of 2020. In the new year, he'll be under intense scrutiny to sign reinforcements once January begins but importantly needs to get the right players after their transfer ban was officially lifted last week.

Wilfried Zaha and Jadon Sancho have been heavily linked, while questions over their defensive situation remain. Do they need another left-back or central defender more? Who can they get, that will improve them exponentially next month? Those questions and more need answering, at a crucial stage for Lampard and his staff as pressure continues to build.