After only being appointed as interim Chelsea manager for a couple of days, Rafa Benitez has already weighed in on the situation surrounding veterans Ashley Cole and Frank Lampard, saying they are likely to leave Stamford Bridge after their contracts expire at the end of the season.
Both the England internationals are yet to agree on a new deal, with Chelsea reportedly only ready to offer the duo one-year extensions, owing to their age. Cole has been repeatedly linked with a move to French powerhouse Paris Saint-Germain, while Lampard has interested Chinese clubs as well as teams in the MLS.
Benitez, speaking to reporters for the first time after being given the manager's role until the end of the season, following the unfortunate firing of Roberto Di Matteo, admitted as things stand, it was likely the experienced duo would leave the club. "I think so," said Benitez, when asked if they would not be Chelsea players next season.
"I don't have all the information and it's not fair to tell me I'm only here for seven months and then expect me to have an influence at the club over the next two or three years, but I think that's the case at the moment."
There have been concerns about the playing style that Benitez will employ, with the Spaniard seen as a bit of a defensive-minded manager. However, Benitez said he would not tinker too much with the squad, while adding his team's always played in an attacking style.
"Before I have used 4-4-2, 4-3-3, 5-3-2, but because this (4-2-3-1) is the shape Chelsea have been using until now, I think at this moment this is the best shape for the team," Benitez told the club's official website. "You cannot change too many things, we have to do the things they were doing well, carry on with these things and then change the other little things.
"We (Liverpool) scored 119 goals in the 2008/09 season. People don't see the difference between a team that is organised with balance and a team that is defensive.
"We had a lot of clean sheets, I remember Petr Cech and Pepe Reina were always competing, but we liked to go forward and score goals. If you look at the stats we had attacking mentality. Sometimes when you are attacking you are defending better."