CHELSEA owner Roman Abramovich has told under-fire Carlo Ancelotti: Spend your way out of trouble.
The Blues’ season has reached breaking point after a slump that has left their Premier League title defence on the brink.
Abramovich and Ancelotti held crisis talks after Wednesday’s 1-0 defeat in Marseille, their third game without a win.
And the mega-rich Russian has given his troubled boss licence to splash the cash once the transfer window re-opens next month.
Ancelotti said: “I spoke to the owner after the game on Wednesday and we spoke about what we can do in January.
“If we need to improve our squad in January, we’ll be able to do this. The owner is available for us to do this.”
Ancelotti’s priority will be a top-class centre back, with his decision not to replace Ricardo Carvalho clearly backfiring.
Benfica centre back David Luiz is Ancelotti’s No. 1 target, while Bolton’s Gary Cahill has also been linked.
Starsport also understands that Ancelotti is keen on Blackburn starlet Phil Jones but the Italian sees the young defender as one for the future.
The Blues’ lack of strength in depth has been laid bare during their worrying slump.
Their bench has been largely made up of promising youngsters, like Josh McEachran and Daniel Sturridge.
Ancelotti is confident Abramovich will stay true to his word, adding: “Do I trust the owner? Yes.
“I spoke with Roman after the game and he gave me total support. He understood the problem of the team.
“He’s doing his best to give every one of us at the club, my players and my staff, his total support.
“He understands very well the problems, the injuries, that we played good football but didn’t win, which affected our confidence.
“We didn’t speak about whether I was his man whatever happens but when I say I have total support, it means he’s very close to me at this moment.
“For this reason, our relationship is very good. It’s very important to have the support of the club and the players when moments aren’t good.
“You have to have trust with each other. He’s been closer to us in this period compared to the other moments.”
