Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino has admitted he could not guarantee that his club captain Conor Gallagher would still be at the club by the end of the window.
Gallagher has become a key player for the Blues under the Argentine this season – starting 19 times and providing four assists – but the Chelsea youth prospect has emerged as one of few players who could depart Stamford Bridge this month.
Mail Sport’s Sami Mokbel reported this week that Tottenham were a shock team Gallagher could join, saying the deal ‘has got legs’ after Spurs were linked with the player last summer.
Mokbel confirmed on It’s All Kicking Off that Chelsea would see his transfer as ‘pure profit’ as he emerged from the academy, which would allow them to spend more on incomings to get around Financial Fair Play rules.
And as speculation continues to grow that Gallagher could be one of the Blues stars sacrificed this month, Pochettino was forced to bat away questions over his future ahead of their FA Cup third-round clash against Preston.
Mauricio Pochettino conceded he could not guarantee Conor Gallagher would stay at Chelsea in this transfer window
Gallagher has been one of Chelsea’s key men this season but has still been linked with a shock move away this month
‘We need to talk about many things but it is clear Conor [still has] a one and a half year contract with us. Nothing to announce, nothing to say. The club is happy with him, he is happy here.’
But when pressed further if he could say for certain whether Gallagher would stay during this transfer window, Pochettino was more cryptic – insisting he could not even guarantee that he himself would stay at the club.
‘Look, I cannot guarantee I will be here tomorrow! In football, different things can happen. [There are] decisions between the club and player.
‘Only the player can guarantee or the club. The player more than the club as the player have one year and half more.
‘[Gallagher] can say “I will be here because my contract allows me to be here”. It’s about making the right decision for the club, the player and the team.’
As for possible incomings, Pochettino said he was happy with his squad but said he was working with the club’s owners on potential deals.
‘We are always talking every day and assessing the squad,’ he added. ‘Some players we own like Andrey Santos that has come back from his loan, we need to take some decision.
‘I think I am happy with the squad I have. We are focused on trying to recover the squad we have. We are assessing things. If we see some possibility [to sign players] maybe we can do it, but at the moment we [haven’t] taken any decision.’
Pochettino vowed to take their FA Cup clash against Preston seriously and play a strong side
Ahead of the game, Pochettino was asked about team news and what team fans could expect to see – amid speculation the head coach could field a handful of youngster or fringe stars.
But Pochettino said he planned to show ‘full respect’ to the Championship outfit and that he would go strong for the Stamford Bridge clash.
‘Not too many changes,’ he said. ‘[We are] not going to change too much the team. Once or twice, [I select] players normally not in the starting XI but we need to anticipate problems.
‘We take [this match] like a Premier League game, not because it’s the FA Cup. Full respect to Preston and tomorrow you will see.’
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