Gary Cahill insists talk of Luis Enrique replacing Antonio Conte won’t affect Chelsea players
Skipper vows that the Blues' squad will continue to give everything for their current Stamford Bridge manager
TALK of Luis Enrique replacing Antonio Conte as Chelsea boss won't upset the players, insists Gary Cahill.
Ex-Barcelona head coach Enrique has emerged as the man for Stamford Bridge should Conte leave - or be sacked.
Speculation surrounding Enrique, 47, who won the Champions League and La Liga twice at the Nou Camp, surfaced over the weekend.
There is talk that Conte is feuding with director Marina Granovskaia, who is a close ally of Blues' owner Roman Abramovich.
The Italian has very little control over transfers and is desperate to have authority over what players are signed.
But the reports that Chelsea skipper Cahill is unperturbed by talk of the Spaniard taking charge and insists none of his team-mates will be troubled by it, either.
Asked if the squad must make sure talk of Conte being replaced does not have a negative effect on results, central defender Cahill said: “That’s right — we as players have to do that.
“This is a case of individual circumstances and situations. It is between the manager and the board. We have no idea what’s going on.
“We just continue to work, give what we can for him and the team. That’s the way we have to be.
“I have experienced it [manager speculation] a lot in my time here but this has been a successful period for the club.
"Chelsea is a successful side and he (Conte) is a top manager. We just work and try to produce what he asks of us.
"He is very experienced and more often than not, we get results.”
The Blues beat Newcastle 3-0 in the FA Cup fourth round on Sunday four days after losing to Arsenal in the Carabao Cup semi-final.
Cahill insisted the team are still very much behind Conte. He added: "Of course we are.
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“There is nothing between the manager and players, whatsoever.
“If you look at the League, if Manchester City hadn’t done what they’ve done, the title would still be there to be won.
"But they’ve broken Premier League records. It just shows how good they have been.
“This season they’ve been fantastic but we still aim to fight for second place in the table.
"We have a big month coming up in February (in the League, FA Cup and Champions League). Let’s hope we come out at the end of that in a positive way.”