Those associated with Chelsea have long since known that their club exists on the footballing equivalent of a fault line. There has been nothing as seismic as events of recent weeks, of course, but amid the aftershocks of change silverware has invariably fallen.
Chaos off the field usually precipitates consistency on it, and this was a fourth straight win since government sanctions were imposed on soon-to-be former owner Roman Abramovich just 10 days ago.
Much like their midweek Champions League victory in Lille, it moves Thomas Tuchel’s side one round closer to a trophy that is beginning to feel like something of an inevitability if history is to be repeated.