Head coach Thomas Tuchel has backed himself to keep Chelsea towards the top of the Premier League table next season.
The Blues currently find themselves in an extreme period of uncertainty, the club under government-imposed restrictions due to a takeover process and the potential of three defenders departing Stamford Bridge on free transfers.
At Wednesday's pre-match press conference ahead of the showdown with Manchester United, Tuchel was quizzed on whether he can keep Chelsea as candidates for the title without the services of influential Antonio Rudiger.
Responding to the question, the German said: "Yes. It is my job, and no matter how the situation will be solved, when it will be solved, and how active we can be in the transfer market, and in which frame we can react, at the end we will dig in and try to squeeze everything out of the squad.
"Hopefully, and I know that I will fall in love with the squad that I have then and try to push the squad to the limit."
As well as Rudiger, Andreas Christensen is expected to sign for Barcelona, while Cesar Azpilicueta continues to be linked with a transfer to the Spanish giants.
Darren Plant
