When Tiemoue Bakayoko first arrived at Chelsea as Nemanja Matic's replacement last summer, Blues fans were convinced they'd signed an upgrade.He was younger, faster and seemed the perfect partner for N'Golo Kante. A chant was even created about them both:"Ba de ya - Tiemoue Bakayoko. Ba de ya - together with N'Golo. Ba de ya - he never gives the ball away. One, two, three, four... [repeat]."How times change. It's now the middle of February and Bakayoko, who cost £40 million from Monaco, is seriously struggling in west London.A number of poor performances have seen the 23-year-old come under fire from both the media and fans, who are starting to turn on him.His red card during the 4-1 defeat against Watford earlier this month was the last straw for many and now there are suggestions he doesn't have an immediate future at Chelsea.It's been just under two weeks since Bakayoko last played for the Blues and according to his manager, Antonio Conte, he won't be available for next week's game against Barcelona."[Marcos] Alonso is ready to play," said Conte after Friday night's 4-0 win over Hull City in the FA Cup. "He is fit, but I don't think Bakayoko [will be]."So, Bakayoko will have to wait a bit longer before returning, though the reaction to his absence for the Barcelona game suggests he might as well not return at all.In fact, it just about sums up where he stands at the Bridge right now; Chelsea fans are absolutely buzzing he won't be in contention to play.

CHELSEA FANS REACT TO BAKAYOKO INJURY NEWS

How sad is that? Bakayoko is hugely out of favour at the moment and the fact Chelsea fans don't want him to recover from his injury is pretty embarrassing.

A return still seems imminent, so time is of the essence for the young Frenchman to prove his critics wrong at Stamford Bridge - or else.