Claudio Ranieri: 'No one can buy Vardy or Mahrez in January'

It's safe to say Claudio Ranieri is confident Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez will remain in Leicester City strips beyond the January transfer window.

After the pair helped Leicester return to the peak of the Premier League table with a famous victory over Chelsea, the Italian manager emphatically rejected the possibility that either player will depart when the transfer market opens in the new year.

"No one can buy Vardy or Mahrez in January," Ranieri told reporters after Leicester's 2-1 victory at the King Power Stadium.

"They don't have the money and they don't have a price."

Both played an integral role in Monday's win as Vardy - the Premier League's top scorer - broke the scoreless deadlock with his 15th goal of the season before Mahrez capped the night with a brilliant left-footed winner in the second half.

If the club chooses to sell either, it could expect to make a massive profit after paying £1.4 million for both - Vardy arrived from Fleetwood Town in 2012 for £1 million, while Mahrez joined the Foxes from Le Havre in 2014 for a miniscule £400,000.

Leicester has been propelled to the top of the table by their performances, and now sit just six points away - through 16 games - from the 41 points last year's edition of the team accumulated through 38 games.