Chelsea legend, Frank Lebouef has urged the club to allow either Conor Gallagher or Ruben Loftus-Cheek to stay at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea need to trim their bloated squad under manager Mauricio Pochettino before the end of the month in order to meet UEFA’s Financial Fair Play regulations.
A string of high-profile players, including midfielders Mateo Kovacic and N’Golo Kante, are on the verge of leaving the west London club amid pressure to sell.
Chelsea are also set to receive bids for the likes of Gallagher, Loftus-Cheek and Carney Chukwuemeka.
“Chukwuemeka, Gallager and maybe Loftus-Cheek are leaving, I think it doesn’t give you too many options to fulfil that spot and make sure you are going to be competitive and that is a concern,” Lebouef told ESPN FC.
“Either Gallagher or Loftus-Cheek should stay to maybe substitute, but you cannot leave only two players in that situation.
“Look at Kovacic, he’s going to sign for Manchester City, where Rodri and John Stones are the guys playing normally there, so for me he’s going as a substitute.
“Chelsea have to make sure they are strong in the middle of the park because we all know the battle is there.”
