Thomas Tuchel warned Chelsea cannot afford to trim their squad before the transfer window closes after losing hamstring injury victim N'Golo Kante for "several weeks".
The head coach would be prepared to consider player exits if he can bring in top-class replacements, but until then the likes of Christian Pulisic and Callum Hudson-Odoi will be staying.
That was the firm message from the Blues boss on Friday, two days out from his team's trip to Leeds United in the Premier League.
He said Kante's injury, sustained in last week's thrilling 2-2 draw with Tottenham, was "quite serious".
"We're talking about weeks, which is not good news," Tuchel said. "We're disappointed and sad because N'Golo was super important and super fit, and he will be out for several weeks."
Armando Broja and Mateo Kovacic are also out of contention this weekend, and while it has been mooted that Chelsea are open to loaning out some first-team players, Tuchel is adamant that should not happen at the moment. Pulisic has been linked with Manchester United.
"We will not comment on our players and will not encourage our players to go out in the moment," Tuchel said
"If I put the chin a little bit up and look at the schedule which is coming, with Southampton during the week and two Champions League matches ... it's coming, it's in front of the door, we will need a lot of quality players to be competitive."
Tuchel's outlook will change if Chelsea can corner their targets and bring them to Stamford Bridge.
"We work together about the reinforcements, but it's never easy," said the German. "It's not that we can wish for something and it will happen. As long as the transfer window is open, there are always possibilities."
Having loaned out Romelu Lukaku to Inter, Chelsea are lacking a proven striker in the number nine mould. The likes of Raheem Sterling and Kai Havertz could do a job there, and may have to on a regular basis if Chelsea cannot sign a targetman.
"I believe we can compete with this group, but to be very honest it's one thing to compete once a week and another thing to compete 60 times in a year and three times in a week," Tuchel said.
"For this you need a strong group, and you need players who challenge for their place and their minutes and push each other to the highest level.
"We are very happy about the performance, and we are still active in the market, and we know what can be possible, but if not we will make the very best out of it.
"If we are looking, we're looking for high quality, and we're looking for personality that suits our group and suits our club, and nothing has changed."
Chelsea won 3-0 at Elland Road last season but surprisingly have never won consecutive away league games at Leeds. They were last beaten by the Yorkshire side in December 2002, when a 2-0 loss at Leeds was incurred after an own goal from William Gallas and a strike from a 16-year-old James Milner
Chelsea hoped Broja would be making an early-season impact after returning from his loan to Southampton, but the 20-year-old Albanian striker is on the injured list for now.
"We know enough about him, but it's one thing to perform on a loan and another to perform in a club like Chelsea," Tuchel said. "He's injured again, and that does not help his own ambitions and does not help us in having a clear view of what he can give us.
"Given the size of the squad at the moment, I would say it's a huge chance for Armando to have an impact at Chelsea. I understand this is his clear ambition, his clear goal to make this step here. He has our support, but unfortunately it's the second time he's injured in a short period of time, and he's held back for that reason."
Championship run-in: Where the top four stand in race for automatic promotion
The battle for automatic promotion from the Sky Bet Championship continues to intensify as Leeds moved into the top-two with a nail-biting win over Middlesbrough on Monday.
Leaders Leicester sit just two points ahead of third-placed Ipswich and the Foxes take on Southampton tonight, where defeat for fourth-placed Saints would all but end their automatic hopes.
Here, the PA news agency takes a look at the remaining weeks of an increasingly tense Championship run-in.
Leicester (1st, played 43, 91 points, +42 goal difference)
Run-in: Southampton (h), Preston (a), Blackburn (h).
Once seemingly certain to return to the top flight after a single season in the second tier – Enzo Maresca’s side were 17 points clear of Leeds – Leicester have suffered a crisis of confidence just at the wrong time.
A 2-1 home defeat by Middlesbrough on February 17 launched a run of 10 league games culminating in a 1-0 reverse at Plymouth which saw them lose six times and collect just 10 of the 30 points available.
However, a 2-1 victory over play-off chasing West Brom took them back to the top of the table and with two of their last three fixtures at the King Power Stadium, they will hope they can make home advantage count.
Leeds (2nd, played 44, 90 points, +43 goal difference)
Run-in: QPR (a), Southampton (h).
As with Leicester, Leeds have suffered a wobble at the most inopportune moment.
A 2-1 defeat at Coventry on April 6 was their first in the league since the turn of the year and, having seen Sunderland leave Elland Road with a point three days later, Daniel Farke’s men lost on home soil for the first time this season last Saturday when Sammie Szmodics fired Blackburn to victory in West Yorkshire.
But they came out on the right end of a seven-goal thriller in Teesside on Monday, claiming a 4-3 win over Middlesbrough that Farke will hope can be a springboard for their final two fixtures.
Ipswich (3rd, played 43, 89 points, +32 goal difference)
Run-in: Hull (a), Coventry (a), Huddersfield (h).
Ipswich’s unlikely tilt at back-to-back promotions has hit the buffers in recent weeks after a remarkable run of nine wins in 10 Championship outings was brought to an end by derby rivals Norwich.
A 1-0 defeat at Carrow Road on April 6 has been followed by home draws with Watford and Middlesbrough and Town must rediscover the form which earned manager Kieran McKenna the accolade of Championship Manager of the Season on Sunday evening if they are to reach the top flight.
However, all three of their remaining opponents still have something to play for, with Hull and Coventry on the fringes of the play-off race and Huddersfield battling desperately to avoid the drop.
Southampton (played 43, 84 points, +29 goal difference)
Run-in: Leicester (a), Stoke (h), Leeds (a).
Southampton’s bad patch arrived in February, when they lost to Bristol City, Hull and Millwall either side of a 2-0 success at West Brom in the space of 12 days.
A 3-0 win over Preston a week ago was their third in succession but despite taking the lead at Cardiff on Saturday, the Bluebirds claimed a last-gasp victory and Saints are now six points adrift of the top two.
How they fare against Leicester may go a long way to deciding their fate, while a visit to Leeds on the final day of the season promises to be a must-watch.
Daniel Farke says seven-goal thriller was ‘good advertisement’ for Championship
Leeds manager Daniel Farke believes Leeds’ 4-3 victory over Middlesbrough was a “good advertisement” for Championship football.
An end-to-end encounter at the Riverside produced five goals in just the first half, starting with the hosts taking an early lead through Isaiah Jones.
Leeds netted two goals in 11 minutes when Summerville slotted home from the spot and Patrick Bamford came back to haunt the Riverside after bundling a goal home.
Emmanuel Latte Lath drew Boro level on the 30 minute mark but Wilfried Gnonto restored the visitors’ advantage in a frenetic first 45 minutes.
Summerville bagged his second of the game after the break with a curling strike and there was late drama when Latte Lath scored a looping header in the 87th minute but Leeds held on for the three points.
Reflecting on a thrilling clash, Farke believes his players showed “great mentality” to see out victory.
He said: “First of all a good advertisement for Championship football, I think all the supporters have enjoyed the game.
“(It was) a great piece of football from two good sides who really went for it to win this game.
“To start the game with this unlucky goal, deflected pass that normally wouldn’t have been a chance, they scored out of this.
“Middlesbrough played today with freedom because it was more or less their last highlight, they could go for it and had a really good shape, then they are 1-0 up after just a few moments.
“To show such a reaction in the first half to come back to create so many chances, to score fantastic goals, was great for us to have.
“Compliments to Middlesbrough, they showed a fantastic performance, but great mentality from our players to lead 3-2 at half-time.
“We needed to show some steel and resilience in the last minutes to dig in and grind out this important result for us and we did.
“Many compliments for the heart, the mentality and the character of our players today and for their offensive quality.”
The result means Leeds climb to second in the table, overtaking Ipswich who have three games left this season compared to the Yorkshire club’s two.
Boro remain ninth in the table and boss Michael Carrick praised his side for their “incredible effort” but believes Gnonto’s goal, which appeared to be offside, was a “massive decision” in the game.
“I enjoyed the game, I thought we did a lot of good things,” he said.
“They’ve got some good quality and they’ve showed it all season. At the top end of the pitch they’re really dangerous.
“I thought we defended largely in shape really well, we were really good with the ball and dominated and controlled large parts of the game.
“I was really pleased with the boys and the effort was an incredible effort all the way to the end. We went for it, we had to go for it, we threw everything at them.
“The offside goal is a massive decision. We asked the boys to defend well and hold the line together, the line’s impeccable really and I think there’s three of them in the line around the edge of the box hold the line.
“You expect offsides given, which it was too clear not to be.”
Inter Milan beat rivals AC Milan to secure 20th Serie A title
Inter Milan claimed their second Serie A title in four seasons after beating AC Milan 2-1 at San Siro.
Goals from Francesco Acerbi and Marcus Thuram gave Inter the three points they required to be crowned champions, although they had to endure a nervous final 10 minutes after Fikayo Tomori pulled a goal back for the home team.
Inter wrapped up the title with five games to spare, standing 17 points clear of their city rivals, who needed a win or draw to delay celebrations.
But they were on the back foot after Acerbi’s 18th-minute header opened the scoring, before Thuram’s shot early in the second half put Inter well on the way to securing a 20th league crown.
Tomori’s effort set up a tense finish, though, in an ill-tempered clash, and there were red cards for Inter’s Denzel Dumfries and two AC Milan players – Theo Hernandez and Davide Calabria – during stoppage time.
Bologna, meanwhile, stayed firmly on course for Champions League qualification by beating Roma 3-1 at the Stadio Olimpico.
Bologna moved just two points behind third-placed Juventus – and seven clear of Roma in fifth – following a dominant display.
Oussama El Azzouzi opened the scoring after 14 minutes, and Joshua Zirkzee doubled the lead with a left-footed shot on the stroke of half-time.
Roma gave themselves a lifeline when Sardar Azmoun netted after the break, but Bologna kept the upper hand and sealed all three points through Alexis Saelemaekers’ goal midway through the second period.
And in Spain’s LaLiga, second-half goals from Youssef En-Nesyri and Isaac Romero delivered a 2-1 home victory for Sevilla over Mallorca, with Abdon Prats claiming a late consolation for the visitors.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
