What would you do if you were… Antonio Conte?

Chelsea are struggling. Three straight victories at the start of the 2016-17 Premier League season are a distant memory, with dismal defeats to Liverpool and Arsenal highlighting glaring deficiencies.

Antonio Conte’s side are eighth in the table, three points adrift of the top four, and have kept just one clean sheet since early April. Their poor run has coincided with the loss of John Terry to injury, but it’s a pretty bleak scenario when you need a previously unwanted 35-year-old to stop Gary Cahill and Branislav Ivanovic imploding.

Is it time to accept Chelsea are just a mediocre outfit, especially given last season’s shambles? Or is there a way to restore the solidity that carried them to the title just 16 months ago?

Clue: it’s not. They were completely overrun in the 3-0 defeat at Arsenal before Conte belatedly switched to 3-4-3 after the restart.

After the capture of David Luiz from Paris Saint-Germain, Conte claimed his team could play a 3-4-3, but rejected the option of deploying a 3-5-2 that yielded much success at Juventus and Italy. So is it time to roll out a three-man defence on a regular basis?

Our view: Chelsea can approach it in a couple of ways. Option a: switch to a three-man defence. Option b: switch to a 4-2-3-1, with Luiz deployed in central midfield alongside N’Golo Kante, but follow the Tottenham model in possession (Luiz dropping between the two centre-backs, allowing the full-backs to push on). We're plumping for a 3-4-3 mainly for entertainment purposes...

But what would the defence look like in your chosen formation? Surely you can’t risk Cahill and Luiz together at the centre of a back four, while a three-man defence also poses problems given the Blues lack the discipline of Conte’s Italians.

Our view: Go for a back three featuring John Terry, David Luiz and Gary Cahill – then bin off the latter when Kurt Zouma is fit again.

Cesc Fabregas has provided an intriguing side tale to Chelsea this season, with the Spaniard – largely untrusted by Conte – spending the majority of the campaign on the bench. He started the shambles at former club Arsenal, before being hooked when Conte reverted to a 3-4-3 shortly after the break. His expulsion has caused great consternation amongst Chelsea fans, with many wondering where their creative spark will come from in his absence.

Our view: He needs another chance. In a 4-2-3-1, Fabregas should play behind the striker – leaving defensive midfield duties to Kante and Luiz. However, in a 3-4-3 it's a bit trickier to fit him in. Still, we would risk him alongside Kante in the centre and see if it flies.

There is some good news for Chelsea fans: they’re actually scoring goals. The weekend loss aside, you have to travel back to mid-April for the last time they failed to score in any competitive fixture. It’s just, given their defensive woes, one or two goals isn’t always enough.

So does Diego Costa need support? Could Eden Hazard provide more thrust in a two-man attack? Is it time to bring in summer signing Michy Batshuayi?

Our view: It’s controversial (well, in sporting terms), but Costa needs to be supported by Hazard and... Victor Moses. Pedro hasn’t settled particularly well at Stamford Bridge, Willian is a wing-back masquerading as a midfielder, Oscar isn’t much use on the flanks, Batshuayi has little top-flight experience. In Moses, you get a player who is finally threatening to realise his potential – fast, direct and a point to prove.