Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca will have to make at least two changes when his side face Liverpool after the October international break.
The Italian has recently had the blessing of being able to name unchanged starting lineups in the Premier League courtesy of only Reece James being on the injury list.
Furthermore, the players that have been impressing in the top flight have been rested for the games in the EFL Cup and Conference League.
However, despite selecting the same XI that had began the previous Premier League encounter versus Brighton & Hove Albion, Maresca witnessed his team fail to overcome Nottingham Forest on Sunday afternoon.
Although Noni Madueke cancelled out Chris Wood's opener and Forest had James Ward-Prowse sent off, Chelsea were unable to force a winner and had to settle for a 1-1 draw.
© Imago
Double defensive blow
There will now be a two-week break before the next encounter, a consequence of the second international break of the season.
Despite that aforementioned rest period, Maresca is already aware that he will have to make two changes to his backline for the trip to Anfield.
Wesley Fofana and Marc Cucurella each collected their fifth yellow cards of the season in the feisty affair in West London on Sunday afternoon.
As a result, they must each serve a one-match ban, Maresca now left to consider his options and hope that there are no further selection issues that materialise during the upcoming international fixtures.
Given the trends that have been set in the cup competitions, the expectation is that Tosin Adarabioyo will replace Fofana and Renato Veiga will be used at left-back.
© Imago
Potential Jackson issue?
There is also a potential issue with Nicolas Jackson who was seen to push Morato in the face during a melee near the end of the match.
As per Kieran Gill of the Daily Mail, VAR decided that there was not enough in the incident to constitute a red card for the Senegal international.
If confirmed, that could prevent any retrospective action against the forward, but Christopher Nkunku is currently in line to step in if required.
Chelsea have incredibly received 27 yellow cards during their opening seven Premier League games, with Cole Palmer the next biggest offender with three cautions.
Darren Plant
