Chelsea boss Rafa Benitez admits the looming international break is a frustration.

Benitez has been weighing up both the positives and negatives of losing players when they head off to represent their respective countries.

"In a normal situation, if you have too many players going to play with their countries, if they play too far away it's a problem, but it's something you cannot change," said the Chelsea manager.

"We have the Brazilians and English playing here, which is good, and others playing around the world. But you have to manage the situation, hopefully they will come back with no injuries.

"We have a lot of respect for all the national managers and we know how important it is for them, but at the same time we know how important it is for us.

"The international break is a negative because the players have to go away, but also a positive because they will change their environment, and that's something that maybe some of them need.

"They will come back with different views and maybe if they score a goal, play well and win they will be happy. If they lose, they will have an opportunity to change things here."