COMMENT: It'll happen. In the next 48 hours a scrambling Chelsea will deliver manager Antonio Conte a new striker signing. It's going to happen...

Definitely? Well, don't hold us to that. But when you have a manager as practical as Conte. And his employers are a club with a history of madcap, deadline day swoops, a big final few hours of this winter transfer window could be in store for Blues fans.

And after a quick chat over the weekend with one former Conte 'confidant', it'll actually be a bigger surprise if the Italian allows this month's market to pass without taking action.

"Practical is a good word," the source told Tribalfootball.com. "If he can help it, Antonio will always seek to cut risks. Something could happen before the deadline. As I've told you before, just study his work with Juve."

So we did. And the summation that Conte won't let this window pass without acting rings true.

No matter the claims of Avram Grant - "the squad is fantastic. The most balanced in England" - we know Conte's dissatisfied with what he's working with. Indeed, he wasn't being coy on Friday when discussing his expectations for the final days of this window.

"I think we have to improve our squad in the numbers of players, I think in some roles we are a few players short," the Italian boss said. “If that happens I'll be happy, if it didn't happen I'll continue in this way."

He wants a reserve goalkeeper signed before sanctioning Asmir Begovic's sale to Bournemouth. The purest would say promote from within. Give a young kid a shot at being third-choice. But ever pragmatic, Conte doesn't wish to invite the risk and wants an experienced shot-stopper to work with Thibaut Courtois and Eduardo.

This, of course, is no secret. But that pragmatism also stretches to the attack. If Michael Emenalo can find one, Conte will approve a new striker signing - even in the short-term. Fernando Llorente, of Swansea City, was never going to arrive as a five-year, project player. Conte had identified his former Juve centre-forward as a stop-gap. A much needed stop-gap. However, the latest from the Liberty is that Paul Clement has put his foot down, insisting no offers be considered for the Spaniard.

But Conte and Chelsea will keep looking. And the name they come up with is likely to surprise - perhaps even shock.

Just consider these winter signings during Conte's time at Juve: Dani Osvaldo - yes, mad Dani Osvaldo from Southampton. Or what about Nicolas Anelka - all the way from Shanghai Shenhua? And even in his first season, Conte took veteran Marco Borriello on-loan from Roma. Players to do a job. To fill a gap. Oh, and significantly, all strikers.

Which is exactly what Conte will have seen in Llorente. For the moment, Swansea have told Chelsea to jog on. But deadline day can do strange things to boardrooms and chairmen. Nothing is settled until the window slams shut.

And as Conte has shown, he'll go to the ends of the earth, well China, to find a solution to a squad problem. And where it was the Frenchman Anelka who Conte recalled to Europe four years ago, it could be a Colombian who fills the void at Chelsea this week.

Tribalfootball.com can reveal Jackson Martinez has been offered to Conte in recent days. Dumped by former Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari from Guangzhou Evergrande's Champions League squad, a fed-up Martinez is "desperate" to return to Europe.

Now 30, the former Atletico Madrid and Porto star has agents hawking him across the continent - including England. Chelsea have been approached, along with Leicester City and West Ham. The feedback from Chelsea was they were pursuing other targets. But with time ticking, there is hope on Martinez's side that a move to Cobham can still happen.

It'll be a gamble. But Conte will know what he's getting with Martinez. He's not the player who left Porto for Atleti two years ago. But that's not what Conte is seeking. He just wants an older hand capable of doing a job when required. Certainly, even accounting for his Guangzhou experience, Martinez meets the criteria.

So, while Chelsea fans consume themselves with a decisive trip to Liverpool on Tuesday, don't rule out receiving a late transfer alert after fulltime at Anfield. Whether it's from Wales or China, Conte, the pragmatist, is insisting striker cover arrive before tomorrow night.