Chelsea captain Gary Cahill says Diego Costa will be missed as he admits there is 'no getting away from the fact' the current squad is too small

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Gary Cahill admits Diego Costa will be a 'big miss' for Chelsea and is hopeful Antonio Conte will bolster their current squad before the transfer deadline.

The Spain international was Chelsea's top scorer last season with 22 goals, but is set for a Blues exit after being told he is no longer a part of Conte's plans.

'As a player, he will be missed,' Cahill told talkSPORT. 'Diego Costa is Diego Costa. He scores goals. He is an animated character and he is a big personality.

'He will be a big miss. We have obviously added to the squad with Alvaro [Morata] and that is a great addition to the squad, but you are always going to miss big players.'

Diego Costa was Chelsea's top scorer last season but is set to leave Stamford Bridge

Antonio Conte told the striker he is not part of his plans ahead of the Premier League season

The 28-year-old signed for Chelsea from Atletico Madrid in 2014 and has scored 52 Premier League goals in three seasons.

Chelsea have brought in the likes of Morata, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Antonio Rudiger and Willy Caballero this summer for a combined fee of £130million, but a host of departures which includes the transfers of Nemanja Matic, Nathan Ake and Asmir Begovic has left Cahill concerned about the depth of their squad.

And his worry is highlighted by comparison, Chelsea currently have just 24 registered players while Sunday's Community Shield winners Arsenal have registered a 41-man squad.

Cahill, however, remains optimistic and is expecting more arrivals to come through the door before the window slams shut. When asked if Chelsea will be signing any more players, he said: 'Possibly. You would have thought so. There is no getting away from the fact if you look at the back of the programme at the weekend [the squad is small].

Gary Cahill admits Costa will be a big loss and is fearful over the depth of their current squad

'We have certainly got the quality – you have seen that last season - but we have to keep players fit because at the minute our squad isn't as big as some of the other squads.'

With Costa's Chelsea exit on the horizon last season's Premier League champions will have to call upon the likes of Morata and Michy Batshuayi to lead the line when they kick-off their campaign this Saturday at home to Burnley.