Chelsea have had a quiet January transfer window and Thomas Tuchel may not have any new arrivals by the time it closes next week.
Despite the mammoth £97.5million spent on club-record signing Romelu Lukaku, that hasn't yet worked out the way many hoped, with the attack behind him not always being able to provide the service that he became accustomed to at Inter Milan.
Therefore, attacking acquisitions could be on the cards for Chelsea come the summer, alongside their other priorities that include adding depth to the midfield and in defence.
This month was appeared to be for signing a full-back replacement for Ben Chilwell, who ruptured his ACL earlier in the season, but football.london understands that attempts to bring back Emerson Palmieri from his loan at Lyon have been unsuccessful, leaving the Blues in a precarious situation with four days lefts.
The general consensus is that no one will be arriving at Stamford Bridge before Monday, with the likes of Ousmane Dembele and Sergino Dest among many others linked, but it seems Tuchel will have to make do with what he has, as significant planning for the summer transfer window then gets into gear.
Meanwhile, a Premier League rival who, like Chelsea, looked destined to have a quiet close to this transfer window now seem to be making a big move. That club is Liverpool.
This is because, as per the Liverpool Echo, the Reds have made an offer 'close to £50million' to Porto for Colombia international Luis Diaz. Liverpool didn't plan to make a move this month, but with Spurs holding talks earlier in the week, the Merseyside club saw their hand forced somewhat.
As well as this, the report claims that Diaz prefers a move to Liverpool rather than Tottenham - something that has left Spurs supporters furious.
Now, how could this update apply to Chelsea? Well, Mohamed Salah is a player who is struggling to agree a new deal, so could this Diaz signing be the Egyptian's long-term replacement?
The consensus among the Liverpool fan base is that the Colombian is possibly seen as Sadio Mane's long-term replacement, but until Salah puts pen to paper on a new deal, the possibility of seeing him return to SW6 one day cannot be ruled out.
If Liverpool contract talks were to fully break down, Chelsea - alongside other interested clubs like Paris Saint-Germain - could pounce on a player who has a current value of £90million, as per transfermarkt.
Encouragingly from a west London perspective, tentative links to the former Roma man continue, with Goal via Tribal Football claiming that Granovskaia and co. are ready to test Liverpool's resolve over their 'Egyptian King'.
If Salah was to return to Chelsea, coupled with the other £110m business that could be completed in the form of Aurelien Tchouameni, Jules Kounde and Niklas Sule signings, the current European Champions could have a rather different look to their make up when they take to the field for the first in 2022/23.
football.london takes a look at the dream Chelsea line-up that could form in the summer if Liverpool's Diaz deal is confirmed in the next few days.
As you can see above, the two linked centre-halves (one attainable for £42m and the other for free) would come straight into the line up at the expense of Trevoh Chalobah and the two likely outgoings - Andreas Christensen and Cesar Azpilicueta.
Antonio Rudiger was touted as one who could leave in the summer but could be persuaded to stay. Thiago Silva, who signed an extension for the next season, would rotate in and out to maintain freshness with Sule and Kounde.
Further up the field and despite increased competition from Real Madrid over the last few days, the Blues have still been the most active in trying to capture their next N'Golo Kante successor in the form of Tchouameni.
As per Marca, Monaco are relishing this competition and are prepared to raise their asking price to around £67m, so if the European Champions were to sanction this transfer, the Frenchmen would be a starter from the get-go and would most likely play alongside Mateo Kovacic.
Jorginho has been recently linked to a Juventus move in the summer whilst Kante could also leave or more likely be used as a squad player due to his increased injury issues.
Up top, Mason Mount and Hakim Ziyech would rotate on the left and on the other side, Salah would be main starter in the right-wing position in behind Lukaku, who will hope that these fresh acquisitions can unlock the form that has so far been lost.
