Chelsea coach Mauricio Pochettino has hinted he would like to add more experience to his Chelsea first-team squad.
In a season that has also been heavily impacted by injuries, Pochettino has had to cope with the complexities of overseeing the development of an extremely-young squad by Premier League standards.
Only four players in the senior ranks - Thiago Silva, Marcus Bettinelli, Raheem Sterling and Ben Chilwell - are aged 27 or older, with a further three players aged 26.
Although some of the younger crop have flourished at times this season, there has been an inconsistency about Chelsea's performances, something which Pochettino has alluded to on more than one occasion.
Reports have suggested that co-owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital are contemplating whether to make a change in the dugout at the end of the season.
Furthermore, Chelsea are in a position where they must fulfil all criteria regarding the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules by June 30.
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What does Pochettino say about transfers?
Taking both factors into consideration, Chelsea are not able to freely identify targets and push ahead with attempting to add them to the squad.
Nevertheless, speaking to reporters on Friday, Pochettino acknowledged that decisions need to be made over how Chelsea approach the market when it reopens in June.
As quoted by the Evening Standard, Pochettino said: "We can keep going in the same way with the policy, but in the squad, we have Thiago Silva, Raheem Sterling and Marcus Bettinelli. Maybe Marcus isn't playing but he does a fantastic job helping the young guys.
"We have experienced players in the squad. It is not going against the project to have some players who are helping the young guys to perform, to be professional, and to understand what it means to be in the Premier League and to be at Chelsea.
"We need to talk and decide the strategy for next season."
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How are Chelsea looking in the short term?
Ahead of Monday's Premier League fixture against Everton, it was revealed that another three senior players had emerged as fitness doubts.
That led to Pochettino admitting that several of the club's academy players had the opportunity to be involved in the squad for the contest with the Toffees.
Pochettino's focus is trying to secure a win that would take Chelsea to within one point of eighth-placed West Ham United in the standings with two matches in hand.
However, Chelsea also have an FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City on the horizon on Saturday evening, which could impact on his team selection.
Darren Plant
