Antonio Conte was non-committal on the future of John Obi Mikel.
The midfielder is out of contract at the end of the season and hasn’t made a single top team appearance under the new Chelsea boss.
There has been reports of interest from clubs in China, Watford and Manchester United for the 28-year-old but no decisions have yet been made.
Asked today about Mikel’s situation Conte told the club website: “The situation is simple: he’s in the squad and he stays with us.
“We know at the end of the season his contract is going to expire but I don’t know what will happen. For every single game I take my decision.”
It seems highly unlikely that Mikel will work his way back into favour, especially with his contract up at the end of the season.
Jose Mourinho is a big admirer of the midfielder who joined Chelsea in 2006 in a complex deal from Lyn Oslo after it appeared he had signed for Manchester United.
Chelsea could refuse to entertain any offer in January from Old Trafford although it’s unlikely that the league leaders would be hard to deal with if an offer came in from outside England.