Andre Schurrle and Mohamed Salah have been handed the opportunity to save their Chelsea careers, according to reports.

Sam Wallace of the London Evening Standard believes Jose Mourinho is “unwilling to make major changes to his squad this month unless an opportunity arises which he feels is too good to ignore,” providing the duo with extra time to impress.

Mourinho‘s squad is well-rounded and crammed with quality. Recent away defeats to Newcastle and Tottenham suggest the side’s resiliency needs improving if they are to compete across all fronts this season, but this isn’t a group the manager desperately needs to improve if success is to be achieved.

Schurrle and Salah continue to disappoint, so it’s no surprise they continue to be linked with exits. The former has just five Premier League starts to his name this season, scoring two goals across a total of 419 minutes’ play, per WhoScored. Salah is yet to start a league tie and has registered just half an hour in the top flight this season.

Mourinho shifted his squad last January, selling Kevin De Bruyne and Juan Mata before signing Salah and Nemanja Matic. This business allowed Chelsea to spend big during the summer on stars such as Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas. While Wallace‘s report suggests Mourinho craves minimal change as the Blues’ title charge takes shape, he is still linked with a handful of likely January signings.

Inter Milan‘s Mauro Icardi is a name who won’t go away, perhaps more so now Manchester City are reportedly close to signing Chelsea target Wilfried Bony, noted by Owen Rawlings of BBC Sport. Icardi isn’t the like-for-like powerhouse replacement for Didier Drogba, but is an improving force at the San Siro.

The Argentinian has 10 goals in 21 matches this season, per WhoScored.com, but is unlikely to be needed until Drogba departs Stamford Bridge.

It’s more conceivable that Mourinho will opt to improve the selection of youngsters available at the club. Real Betis winger Dani Ceballos is said to be attracting the interest of Chelsea and Atletico Madrid, reported by talkSPORT. He is valued at £6 million after breaking into the Liga Adelante side’s first team and is a more likely bet than Mourinho securing a big-money move during January.

The Chelsea boss has already proven himself unwilling to surpass certain budgets this month. Ian Baker of the Express writes how the club were “not prepared to pay over £8 million” for Croatian striker Andrej Kramaric, allowing him to join Leicester for £9.7 million. If the price isn’t right, Mourinho simply won’t act.

Club specialist Garry Hayes certainly doesn’t believe the club will act on rumours linking them with Lionel Messi, as told to B/R UK’s Ryan Bailey:

Sky Sports’ Graham Hunter also questioned whether such a move would be possible:

It’s dangerous to uproot a confident squad during the January transfer window. At this point, it’s questionable whether the addition of a player like Icardi would upset the balance of the side.

Quality cover is available throughout the team, highlighted by Schurrle and Salah‘s residency on the bench, so a lack of new signings could leave Chelsea in a better financial position heading into the summer.

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