Chelsea have been the biggest spenders in the Premier League and across Europe. They've spent more than entire leagues combined and have an entire XI of attackers on their books but the business is still not done this month.
Such is Todd Boehly's eagerness to catch up on lost time from last summer and make rapid inroads into developing the squad he inherited into one more akin to his style of ownership, Chelsea are on a fast-track squad rebuild. As Jurgen Klopp has already pointed out though, this spending is not sustainable.
The point is that it doesn't have to be. This is very much the emergency surgery part of the plan, what follows will be more centred around efficiency. However, even with the intent to overhaul an entire squad the Blues are only willing to go so far.
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Having been taken into the final week of the month it was already going to be a tough task to secure the desired players. Unfortunately for Graham Potter the areas left to improve are possibly the two most important. Midfield is in massive need of extra reinforcement, though the club don't want to be buying much less than first-choice options.
Right back is the other area, finding competition and backup for Reece James over the short and long term. Although progress has been made in sounding out their targets - and, as is the case with Malo Gusto, agreeing personal terms - at this stage of the window it is harder to come to a deal.
Lyon, in this instance, are holding out for a high price not only due to Gusto's talent and potential but also because he is their prize asset and it is mid-season. It would be almost impossible to find an adequate replacement for the 19-year-old at this point. That gives the French side the upper hand in negotiations.
President Jean-Michel Aulas has even come out to say that nothing will happen this winter, though that doesn't rule out loaning him back to the Ligue 1 side or a permanent deal in the summer. Chelsea are still focused on getting their target, but according to the Telegraph won't bend at will to the demands of Lyon.
An original bid fell below £20m and well off the valuation of Lyon which is close to double that. Chelsea are used to having these conversations at this point, waiting out for Leicester to sell Wesley Fofana for much less than their desired world record price, meanwhile, they got a good structural deal for Mykhailo Mudryk too.
Gusto is just the next name on the list and whilst it wouldn't be a surprise to see the Blues dip back in for him, they aren't simply going to play the desperate big club in January role.
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