Enzo Maresca addresses signing of Alejandro Garnacho after agent meets Chelsea chiefs

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has broken his silence on the club's pursuit of Alejandro Garnacho. Speculation over the Argentina international's move to Stamford Bridge has intensified this week after his representatives were seen at Stamford Bridge for the club's match against Wolves on Monday.

And in his pre-match press conference ahead of his side's trip to Manchester City tomorrow, Maresca was pressed on whether a transfer was imminent.

However, the Italian denied a deal would be reached, insisting he was happy with his current advanced options.

“I’m happy with what we have right now,” he said. “On the right side are Pedro (Neto) and Noni (Madueke), and on the left is Jadon (Sancho). We had Mykhailo Mudryk, but he is not with us. Tyrique George is an option.”

On Thursday, Garnacho started for Manchester United for the third time in four games and twice came close to scoring his first goal since November 28. And the Old Trafford faithful made their feelings about the star clear, chanting his name loudly throughout the 90 minutes. .

But after the match, Ruben Amorim gave no assurance that the 20-year-old would stay in Manchester. When asked if the player would stay at the club beyond the transfer window, he replied: “We will see in the next few days.”

Chelsea's links with Garnacho have sowed doubt over the future of Joao Felix, who has struggled to settle in since his permanent move from Atletico Madrid in the summer. But Maresca also insisted the Portugal international was not for sale in this window.

“I said, for sure, Joao is a Chelsea player,” he said. “The problem for Joao and Christo (Nkunku) is that the coach plays most of the games with just one attacking midfielder, Cole Palmer. They are struggling to get minutes for different reasons. These are both top players.”

The Blues recalled Trevor Chalobah from his loan spell at Crystal Palace this month, with Maresca currently struggling with injuries to a number of defenders. But he was coy when asked if there would be any new additions to his squad before the February 3 deadline.

“With the club, the sports directors, we are attentive if something could happen,” he said. “We will see in the next 10 days if anything will happen.”

The Blues travel to the Etihad after ending their run of five Premier League matches without a win against Wolves. But as City recovered from their midweek collapse to PSG in the Champions League, Maresca refuted suggestions his side were facing the champions at the right time.