Enzo Maresca has just faced the media in his pre-match press conference at Cobham.

The Chelsea head coach answered questions ahead of Saturday's trip to Manchester City in the Premier League. The Blues go into this weekend two points ahead of City, with the sides in fourth and fifth-place, respectively, meaning there is now added significance on this match in the race for a Champions League spot.

Maresca was asked about the game, going back to his former club, Chelsea's transfer business, the latest injury news and much more. Here is every word the Italian had to say in his pre-City presser...

READ MORE: Enzo Maresca fires clear Alejandro Garnacho to Chelsea transfer message in huge update

READ MORE: Alejandro Garnacho has already made Chelsea feelings clear amid fresh Manchester United claim

Any team news? Will Levi Colwill, Enzo Fernandez and Romeo Lavia be available?

"Probably Levi and Enzo, they can be available. It depends on today's session. Romeo will be out."

How long will Lavia be out for?

"We don't know yet. We will wait a little bit more. At least I think a few weeks more."

How concerning is that? Do you think you will need to bring in a player or bring back someone from loan?

"No. We have in this moment, I think we have enough players to cover that situation with Moi [Caicedo], with Enzo, and in the last game Kiernan [Dewsbury-Hall] played there. So in this moment, the intention is not to go for one more midfielder."

How is Cole Palmer? Is he 100% fit?

"He is better, he is better. He did an unbelievable effort to play against Wolves and he is getting better."

The club have been linked with a move for Alejandro Garnacho in the transfer window. Are you happy with the wide options you have?

"No, no, I'm happy with the ones we have in this moment. I have said many times, on the right side is Pedro [Neto] and Noni [Madueke] and on the left side is Jadon [Sancho]. Misha [Mudryk] was with us but now he is not with us, Tyrique [George] is a young profile that can help us. In this moment, we are okay."

Is there an update on Renato Veiga? Is he close to moving to Juventus?

"At the moment, he is a Chelsea player and we will see in the next hours."

Have you been surprised about what's happened to Manchester City this season?

"I think it is normal. It can happen, it can happen. What is not normal is the amount of years they won things, won trophies; this is something that is not normal.

"What is normal is to live a moment like they are living this moment. But for sure, they are going to be back soon - I don't have any doubt."

Do you still speak to Pep Guardiola on a regular basis?

"Yeah, my contact with him, with the club, is fantastic. I said many times: I will always be thankful to Manchester City, the reason why is because they called me back after an Italian club [Parma] sacked me after two or three months. That showed trust, confidence and faith - so I will always be thankful to the club and for sure, Pep because we are both managers but first of all, we have a fantastic relationship in terms of friendship and this is the most important thing."

Have you spotted any differences in Guardiola?

"No. I think the difference is from outside. These kind of things, this type of moment; any club, any manager, any player is going to live this kind of moment. The strange thing is for seven or eight years, you don't live this kind of moment like City. But overall, they are okay."

Do you expect any signings this month?

"Listen, the club, the sporting directors, we pay attention if something can happen. But at the moment, as you said, 10 days to go and we haven't done nothing. We called back Trev [Chalobah] and we will see in the next 10 days if something is going to happen."

What's the latest on Joao Felix's future?

"For sure, Joao is a Chelsea player. The problem, unfortunately, for Joao and Christo [Nkunku], the manager plays most of the games with one attacking midfielder and that is Cole Palmer. We have decided to play with an attacking midfielder in most of the games, so this is the reason why Joao and Christo struggle to get minutes - not for any different reasons because they are both fantastic players, fantastic guys who work well.

"The reason why is only because most of the games I decide to play with one attacking midfielder in terms of balance. This is the reason why."

So could both leave in this window?

"I am not saying that, I am not saying that. I am saying that I like both but the reason why they struggle is because most of the time I play with one attacking midfielder."

Do you think it's a good time to play Man City?

"No. I don't believe in these kinds of things. It is probably on the other side; I think this kind of club with this kind of players, when they are in a difficult moment, it's when they want to show how good they are. They want to come against everyone and say: 'Okay, if you think we are not good enough, we are going to show you how good we are', so I don't think there is a good moment to play against City."

Do you believe Guardiola needs to be shown more support?

"Pep is strong enough in this kind of thing but for sure, like any human being, he needs support in this moment. If you think about the last eight or nine years, except the last three or four months, they were top always, winning titles and important trophies. It is something normal."

Your away form, can you put that down to anything?

"It probably shows how balanced we are. Everyone is talking that we get more points away than at home. I don't think the difference is big between home and away. It probably shows how the team is balanced home or away. Hopefully in the future, we can get more points at home - this is the target. But overall, I think this is something good because it shows how the team is in this moment in terms of balance."

Do you think you have the right mix of players in your squad to be challenging for the title?

"No. For sure, we are getting better but we need experience. In the last month, January and December, we live in a moment where we struggled with results. I think we will be better in the future."

How big away at Man City be?

"I think if you see the top six at this moment, we beat Bournemouth away and drew at home, we beat Newcastle at home and have to play there, we drew against Arsenal and then we lost to City and Liverpool. It is a matter of balance.

"I think we will win games against big teams, for sure. But I don't think if we win tomorrow it means we are ready for the title. We are going to try and win, for sure, but it will be one more game."

How has Robert Sanchez been around the training ground?

"Robert is okay, he is okay. It is a matter for me to understand that anything can happen. How many times has Moi missed a pass during the season? Many times. How many times has Nico [Jackson] missed a goal? Many times. How many times has Noni missed a cross? Many times.

"Robert has made four mistakes from the beginning of the season that we conceded a goal. It is normal. It is part of the game. If you don't risk, if you don't play, then you don't make a mistake. For me, it's not any strange thing behind Robert's mistake. It is part of our job."