Mauricio Pochettino responds to Chelsea interest in Jordan Henderson

Mauricio Pochettino gave little away when quizzed on Chelsea's potential interest in Saudi Pro League midfielder Jordan Henderson after his side's 4-0 FA Cup win over Preston on Saturday.

The England international prompted controversy when he left Liverpool for the Middle East during the summer and is said to be unhappy with life at new club Al Ettifaq, struggling with low crowd attendances and the stifling heat.

The 33-year-old, who has retained his spot in Gareth Southgate's Three Lions squad despite the move to Saudi Arabia, is 'desperate' to play Premier League football again but any potential interest from Chelsea was kept under wraps by manager Pochettino.

He said: "We didn't talk about names. At the moment, we are not talking about players.

"I saw Behdad [Eghbali], with Paul [Winstanley] and Laurence [Stewart]. I think we are going to have a chat tomorrow. We didn't talk about names or players. For now, we are focusing on players like Andrey Santos."

Henderson is a modern great at Anfield, captaining the Reds to successes in the Premier League, Champions League, the FA Cup and the Carabao Cup before calling time on his 12-year career on Merseyside.

Any potential incomings at Stamford Bridge may depend on potential departures. 90min understands Chelsea are keen to keep Conor Gallagher, who is into the final 18 months of his contract, but will listen to offers of £60m.

Chelsea's young and expensive squad have struggled for consistency throughout the campaign but are currently enjoying their best run of form since Pochettino's arrival, winning five of their last six games in all competitions.

Next up is the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final away at Middlesbrough before a home clash with Fulham. There are then ten days until the Blues play Boro again at Stamford Bridge.

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