So, is it, at last, Demba Ba time?
Fernando Torres' latest injury, a groin problem sustained in the warm-up before the trouncing of Spurs, did not exactly improve Jose Mourinho's mood.
The Blues boss spoke of his "surprise" that one of the few Chelsea players not to have been away on international duty should succumb to such a needless problem.
Then again, perhaps we should not be surprised. It seems that every time Torres looks as if he might be hitting a bit of form, his body lets him down.
Why would that be, I wonder? Bad luck? Or bad personal preparation?
That is for Mourinho, Torres and the Chelsea medical team to decide but in the meantime, for a fortnight at least, it does leave the Blues short of options.
Ba's late double off the bench gave the Senegalese some much-needed confidence. He has, though, made just one start – in the "dead" Champions League tie against Steaua Bucharest, since October 6, with 14 appearances from the bench adding up to less than four hours of game-time between them.
Now, though, Chelsea are one minor pull or strain to Eto'o from having to play Ba against Galatasaray or Arsenal in crunch games.
Mourinho, aware of the reality, opted to try to talk up the man who has been little more than an afterthought for much iof the season and who is only at Chelsea because Arsenal quibbled over the loan feel on deadline day at the end of August.
"Demba is now very important," said Mourinho. "I proved earlier in the season that I was right to have three strikers because when one is injured you need the other two.
"I think it's one of the best decisions we made to keep three strikers and it's good for him that he scored.
"The game was dead and he wants to score by saying he scored the winning goal.
"They're not he winning goals but they're goals and they give confidence. He played 90 minutes for the national team and came back and scored two, so that's good."
Ba is not, in truth, good enough for Chelsea. He will not be around next season.
For now, though, he may have a big job to do. Is he up to it?
