Home to Arsenal is the fixture Jose Mourinho probably always wants to see ahead of him when Chelsea are in a rut.
It remains the case that Arsene Wenger has never beaten one of his sides in a competitive fixture, and on the evidence of Saturday, he shouldn't be holding his breath for that first win.
It's almost as if the easy stuff is done, and Chelsea now have to turn to the far trickier prospect of a League Cup tie away at League One Walsall.
There will be fallout from the win over Arsenal, of course.
Even if the powers that be decide not to take action against Diego Costa for his latest charge sheet of 'crimes' in that game, time is quite possibly up on his antics.
Mourinho believes all is fair in love and war, and patently said so post-match at Stamford Bridge: accusing one journalist who questioned that approach of probably having played badminton as a kid.
Winding-up the opposition has been a part of the game for many a year.
Chelsea's victory over Arsenal in pictures:
Dennis Wise's pinch on Nicky Butt's inner thigh (which led to retaliation, red card, and a 5-0 win for Blues) was a masterpiece of the art, but only one of the more recent examples.
But it is a ploy that will only work so long as Costa gets away with it.
With the FA hot on retrospective action, one red card gained is not worth three future matches where the first-choice striker is lost.
And, even if that doesn't happen, officials will be on his case to a far greater extent having seen what he got away with here.
That raises the prospect of him being penalised for things he simply hasn't done – because, as we know, referees do take a player's history into account when making split second decisions.
And therein lies the whole tedious, sniping territory we all remember from the season before last: Mourinho's claimed 'campaign' against Chelsea.
The 'streetfighter' aspect is something that will never be banished from Costa's game, and long may it reign there. It is something that makes him unique, that makes him special, and that makes him the perfect combative forward for a team like Chelsea.
But it does need to be managed – and that is where Mourinho will surely look to take subtle action, away from the glare of the cameras.
Regardless of how the Costa issue pans out, the next week will be a trying one for Chelsea – and one that involves plenty of air miles.
That run-out at Walsall should be largely a formality – though Mourinho will surely use the opportunity to test a few lower order squad players, and young names from the Vitesse Arnhem Feeder Academy.
The main focus for the week will be getting three points at St James Park: not a happy hunting ground for Mourinho (he has never won there in the league).
From there, Chelsea make their first Champions League trip of the season: the relatively short hop to Porto (considering Kiev and Tel Aviv lie ahead).
This will be a game charged with emotion: a homecoming for Mourinho, who has family in the city.
Most will welcome him with open arms, some with hostility. All will want to see him depart a loser.
Chelsea have visited the Estadio Dragao three times in the Champions League - and won only once - the lone occasion they went there without Mourinho.
If only, Mourinho no doubt thinks, Chelsea could play Arsenal every week.
