Caicedo had been restricted to one substitute appearance so far this season, and his time on the pitch that day – the win over Brighton in late August – was cut short by a recurrence of the calf problem he picked up earlier that month.

The extended international break gave Caicedo a chance to finish his recovery at Cobham, and Xabi Alonso had no qualms restoring him to the starting XI for the visit of the Cherries. The Ecuadorian got stuck into the midfield battle from the off, with his four successful tackles a game-high figure.

Caicedo also completed 96 per cent of his passes, and afterwards he reflected on his return to match action.

‘It feels so good to be back with the team and there is no better way to come back than with a win,’ Caicedo told Chelsea TV after the full-time whistle.

‘It was a tough moment to be honest, I couldn’t be with the team, but now finally I am back. I just want to be with the team in every moment, so I’m so happy to come back.

‘I felt a little bit tired after a long time without playing to be honest!' added Moi. 'I need to be careful, but I feel good. I enjoy being with the team, with the fans, with everybody. Now we want to keep working, keep pushing because we need to be up there.’

The emphatic win over Bournemouth got our October schedule off to the perfect start. Next up we travel to face Everton away, before a high-profile run of fixtures against Tottenham, Liverpool and Manchester United. Caicedo knows this is a good opportunity for the Blues to make a statement.

‘Everybody is excited with those kind of games,’ said Caicedo.

‘It’s always nice to play in those games and for sure we will prepare well because we want to get as many points as possible.

‘We want to keep going forward because we want to put Chelsea where they belong.’