Gianfranco Zola has admitted that he may have to trim his squad in January - but remains adamant that none of his key players will be leaving.
With remarks that echoed Alan Curbishley's in the weeks before he was forced to quit, Zola has confirmed that should the current board remain in place come January he will have to reduce the size of his squad - a squad that, in comparison with other Premier League rosters, is hardly bursting at the seams with players capable of holding down a first team place.It is understood that it is these players the club wishes to move on - but as the summer transfer window proved, that is easier said than done. However Zola remains confident that he will be holding on to his main players.
One such player, England's Matthew Upson has been linked with a return to Arsenal. But Zola insists that he is going nowhere in January.
Matty is not for sale either now or in January," he said. “I don’t have to sell any of my best players. I have been promised that.
"But when we have all the players back fit we will have to make some decisions. For me, it's not worth having 24 players and having some players only training and not playing. It's not good for them or for us.
"So yes, we will probably be selling some players but we'll decide only when I have the full squad training and then I can make my decision. The players who are not playing here regularly we will give them the possibility of playing a little bit more or going somewhere else.
"But we won't be selling our best players. The club intends to keep and to sign good players who we think have a good future at the club."
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