Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has ruled out a January exit for Oscar and insists the out-of-favour midfielder still has a big part to play at the club.
Oscar, 27, has dropped down the pecking order at the club since Conte changed the set-up of the team to 3-4-3 and has been heavily linked with a move away when the transfer window re-opens at the start of next year.
The Brazil international has never really managed to consolidate himself as one of the first names on the Chelsea team sheet, but Conte has denied suggestions the club will look to move the creative midfielder on in January.
“Oscar’s future is Chelsea,” Sky Sports quote Conte as saying. “For me he is an important player in my squad. He is in good form.
“It is logical that I have to choose the starting XI every week but Oscar is a great player and, for me, he stays in Chelsea.
“It’s important send this message to all. He will stay with us because I consider him an important player.”
Oscar, who has three years remaining on his existing deal, hasn’t started a Premier League game since Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat to Liverpool midway through September, which was the game before Conte changed the system of the team.
The Brazilian has been limited to just two substitute appearances since then in Chelsea’s resulting five league matches, amassing just 28 minutes of action in the process. Despite that, only Marcos Alonso (4) is averaging more tackles per league game for Chelsea than Oscar (3.5).
For more stats on Oscar, click here to visit his WhoScored player page
