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The fans will always nod appreciatively when a band roll out the new material. But it is the old hits the majority of the crowd have paid to see – the songs that have been played and heard thousands of times.

Those celebrating 50 years of the Rolling Stones at Hyde Park in July will barely notice the grey hairs and the wrinkled faces. They still picture Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood at their strutting best.

So it is understandable why so many Chelsea supporters cannot bring themselves to properly let go of their own Fab Four.

Jose Mourinho brought the latest Blues generation some of the best days they have seen.

Frank Lampard will most likely become the club's highest-ever goalscorer and write himself into the history books.

John Terry has been one of the country’s outstanding defenders over the past decade. Captain. Leader. Legend.

Didier Drogba was a frontman to rival the best in the world and pretty much crowned himself the king of Wembley.

It is not hard to see the temptation of bringing back Mourinho, handing Lampard a new contract, restoring Terry to the side and giving Chelsea fans their dream encore.

There is also an argument that a team including Lampard and Terry, managed by Mourinho, would have put up a stronger challenge against Manchester City on Sunday. Drogba’s record at Wembley suggests he would have almost certainly scored.

But there were enough flashes in Chelsea's new material to reaffirm this is a club that needs to look forwards and not reach for the past.

Brazilian midfielder Oscar played his way into the game and started to pull the second-half strings for Chelsea, while Eden Hazard drifted past player after player during the final 20 minutes and Juan Mata prompted and probed.

Sure, Mourinho may have changed things quicker and Lampard could have smacked in an equaliser from 20 yards. But remember how Chelsea stayed in the FA Cup to eventually book a semi-final date against City.

With his team being battered by Manchester United at Old Trafford, Rafa Benitez acted decisively to replace Lampard with John Obi Mikel and swapped Victor Moses with Hazard.

Seven minutes later, Hazard turned the tide of the game and Chelsea got a draw. Believe it or not, Mourinho is not the only man in the world to have made a good substitution.

Lampard then watched Chelsea beat United in the replay from the substitutes' bench, alongside Terry, and for 90 minutes nobody inside Stamford Bridge thought about the Special One.

Is it really so terrifyingly stupid for a club to allow a 34-year-old, who is no longer a first-team regular, to leave at the end of his contract?

It is not just Chelsea who have deemed Lampard to be past the peak of his powers. England boss Roy Hodgson now considers Jack Wilshere and Tom Cleverley better options to little dispute.

The obvious argument is to point to Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes at Manchester United, and it is true that Sir Alex Ferguson has used his old heads with each new era to great effect.

But that is much easier to do when a club has one manager for almost 30 years. Not so easy for clubs at which lasting 30 days is an achievement for bosses both interim and permanent.

And what of lads like Josh McEachran. How long must he wait? If Chelsea delayed the inevitable for another year with Lampard, then the England Under-21 international may as well pack his bags now for another loan spell next season.

Nathaniel Chalobah has proved himself capable of at least taking a place on the Chelsea substitutes’ bench during his impressive loan stint at Watford.

Romelu Lukaku is a striker in the Drogba mould who has scored 13 Premier League goals for West Brom this season, but still Chelsea pursue Andre Schurrle and Radamel Falcao.

Following Chelsea Under-19s' defeat to Aston Villa in the final of the NextGen Series, coach Dermot Drummy reiterated the fact the club's youngsters need to see a potential route to the first team.

For that to become a reality, then the ties must be cut at some point with Lampard and Terry. If they are no longer first-choice picks, then this summer seems as good as any.

Ashley Cole's case was different because he remains the best player at the club in his position and was rightly handed a contract extension - on form, not sentiment.

As the weekends tick by towards the end of the season and another managerial change at Stamford Bridge, the calls for a Mourinho return will only grow louder.

But if Chelsea really want to usher in a new era built around Oscar, Hazard and Mata, then surely the club require a fresh approach.

There is no more deserving Premier League manager than David Moyes, while Roberto Martinez and Michael Laudrup have demonstrated flair in the transfer market and on the pitch.

Chelsea have options other than Mourinho abroad as well with Malaga’s Manuel Pellegrini a strong contender.

Reverting to the back catalogue would no doubt provide a quick high, but Chelsea must complete the difficult experimental stage to climb back to the top of the hit parade.