Alan Pardew claims Mauricio Pochettino’s treatment of Conor Gallagher this season has sent out a big message to Chelsea’s owners.

Now we’re halfway into the season, everybody can see the players that Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino has preferred up to this point.

Conor Gallagher, 23, is quite obviously a real favourite under this management.

The England midfielder is nailed-on starter in the Blues line-up, playing in 26 of the club’s 27 games across all competitions so far this season. He’s been the stand-in captain while Reece James and Ben Chilwell have been injured, too.

Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images

Alan Pardew says that Pochettino’s made it crystal clear to Chelsea’s owners he wants to keep Gallagher amid frequent transfer speculation about the player’s future.

“I think Poch has made a statement, which I would have done if I was him as manager. He’s made a statement to upstairs that he doesn’t want him (Gallagher) to go because he’s made him captain. He’s got Silva there, he’s got some natural leaders, so why would he do that? That was a message to the ownership: he’s staying here. He has been very, very good for Chelsea,” Pardew told talkSPORT.

Mauricio Pochettino wants to keep Conor Gallagher

So, will Chelsea’s influential box-to-box midfielder still be their player by the time the January window shuts?

The Independent reported last week that Tottenham are eyeing Gallagher as a priority target as they increase plans to sign a new midfielder this month. In addition, the report mentioned that Chelsea could allow his sale for around £50million.

In our view, Chelsea’s season could grind to a halt if they offload Gallagher in the next couple of weeks.

He’s consistently one of the top performers. Also, we fear of the general fan reaction if he’s sold, especially to a main rival.