Chelsea still have no idea how to replace John Terry - and it's a big problem for Antonio Conte

One day very soon, Chelsea Football Club will be a John Terry-free zone. As the matches pass one-by-one, in what is surely to be the Blues' captain's last season as a player with his only permanent club, the chances of him pulling off yet another new-contract escape act look to be less and less likely.

Barring some unexpected move upstairs - and with the Chelsea management chain of progression, little is ever truly expected - the 'Captain, Leader, Legend' could well be earning his crust elsewhere from summer 2017.

But, as we saw on Friday night against Liverpool, the gap left by Terry will be immense.

It was easy to criticise the performance of David Luiz on his second debut for the club. Had he not received flack, he would have been the only one of the 15 men involved (including three subs and manager), who avoided it.

There were occasional lapses, of the sort pretty much all expected to see when the Brazilian was re-signed by the Blues. But, truth be told, he was one of the better performers on the night: showing that passion, drive, and attacking ability which endeared him to this set of fans in his last spell here. The greater issue, in Terry's absence through injury, was on the right side of defence.

Gary Cahill and Branislav Ivanovic have not had a great start to this new season. Ivanovic has long been a bugbear for many, but the pairing here with Cahill, in the absence of the team's biggest personality, resulted in a weakness that was particularly clear to Jurgen Klopp's side.

Managers like to dodge questions about the merits of individuals: thus, for example, when Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp was asked afterwards about the benefit to him of Cesc Fabregas sitting out 83 minutes of this game, he merely smiled and wished all a good night.

When asked about Terry, however, Antonio Conte was far less opaque: pointing to the benefits he brought in organisation of defence - particularly when facing set pieces.

It was a surprisingly frank admission: particularly given the finger it pointed towards Luiz and Cahill.

Though, perhaps more than that, said finger was also angled towards the club's hierarchy and the apparent failure to secure the defensive signing he needed to make this back four work during his captain’s increasingly frequent, and soon to be permanent, absence.

The problem is that nobody at the club seems to know how Terry is to be replaced. The options from within - soon-to-return from injury Kurt Zouma, and loaned-out Andreas Christensen – both show much promise, but do not yet hold the organisational expertise of the masterful Terry.

Conte's preferred external options, Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, failed to come off for a number of reasons: their comfort at a Juventus once again growing in power and influence; Chelsea's lack of European football; the club's refusal to break the bank. At 32 and 29 years of age respectively, those are options that look to have sailed for future transfer windows.

This is why the largely popular resigning of Luiz, who definitely does bring something to this squad, did not paper over the cracks of a summer where Chelsea yet again failed in their key objective: to find a new defensive rock who can lead this side.

The season is only young, and Chelsea are still well placed to achieve their key objective: getting back into the Champions League, where they feel they belong. But Conte knows, and has pretty openly highlighted, an area where his employers' summer dealings have left him short.

If Chelsea are so shaky in the absence of that one soon-to-be 36-year-old, then the occasions they look so lost will be increasingly frequent this season. And what of next season, when he will almost certainly be gone?

It has to be hoped that Conte's regrets over his absentee captain do not receive too frequent an airing, or the signs for his own long-term presence will not be good.