Chelsea's determination to sign a midfielder hasn't been halted by their almost continuous attacking incomings this window. With six players through the door at Stamford Bridge already and over £150m spent, Graham Potter's options have been well and truly bolstered.
Four of the six new players at Cobham are attackers, with Joao Felix, David Datro Fofana and Mykhailo Mudryk all making their first appearances for the club whilst Noni Madueke will be in contention to play against Fulham on February 3. The Blues also don't have to worry about mixing their attentions between transfers and matches, knowing that the window will have been and gone before they're next in action.
This allows Todd Boehly's new recruitment team to focus their work on the rest of the month before planning for the summer. Although it doesn't look like the buying is done yet - with Malo Gusto agreeing personal terms, football.london understands - there is still a need to offload players as well.
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Should Gusto come in he would be the perfect back-up option for Reece James, leaving the midfield as the next area of priority. Enzo Fernandez was heavily looked at earlier in the window before talks broke down after no agreement could be reached over the price and structure of a deal.
football.london understands that new talks have started for the 22-year-old World Cup winner but there is still a long way to go. In order for Benfica to be convinced to sell Fernandez he would have to become the most expensive player in Premier League history and Chelsea are already under pressure in regards to complying with Financial Fair Play regulations.
With that in mind, plus the bloated squad being created, Chelsea will be under pressure to sell some of their assets in a bid to fund their aggressive spending. Amongst those that could go are Hakim Ziyech, Christian Pulisic, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Kai Havertz.
One player that has had more attention than most across the last nine months is Conor Gallagher. The midfielder starred against his former club Crystal Palace last week and was also hugely impressive at Anfield in the goalless draw with Liverpool on Saturday. The 22-year-old has built up a reputation for being a Premier League level midfielder but hasn't always had a defined role at Stamford Bridge this season.
With Palace one of the clubs circling him over the summer, Newcastle are also interested in securing his signature and could turn to him this winter for a mid-season energy boost. The Eagles made an ambitious £27million bid for him late on in the summer which was swiftly turned down, whilst Patrick Vieira's side are also linked with making another offer for him.
Newcastle have more money to spend after their takeover and may be more able to meet his valuation, which is around £40million. football.london understands that both sides made an approach over a possible loan this month but Potter hasn't been interested in letting him move on.
However, if Fernandez is to join and the £106million release clause is met, Chelsea may not have much choice other than to sell on one of their stars. Should Gallagher depart and recoup £40million then the net spend on Fernandez would therefore drop to £66m, a much more manageable price to stomach.
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