Chelsea will sanction just one transfer in January for Frank Lampard

Chelsea director Maria Granovskaia has reportedly informed Frank Lampard that the club would make only one transfer when the winter transfer window opens.

The Blues were the biggest spenders last summer, shelling out in excess of £200m to strengthen the squad.

This saw the arrivals of several players including Timo Werner, Kai Havertz, Ben Chilwell, and Edouard Mendy to Stamford Bridge.

In light of this spending spree and the financial crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Chelsea are unlikely to spend lavishly again in January, although there is one player that the board could still purchase.

A report by The Athletic suggests that the Blues hierarchy remain determined to lure Declan Rice back to the club from West Ham.

The England international had begun his development with Chelsea and spent eight years at the club before being offloaded in 2014.

Declan Rice could still make his way to Stamford Bridge

He proceeded to join the Hammers, making his first-team debut a year later and has since gone on to become one of the highest-rated midfielders in the league, leading to interest from several teams in England.

Chelsea had been linked with the 21-year-old last summer, with Lampard reportedly telling the club to do all within their power to sign him.

The club are expected to rekindle their interest and a bid in excess of £50m is expected to be launched, although West Ham are uninterested in letting their prized asset leave.

David Moyes maintains that the midfielder is not for sale, while also revealing that no concrete offer has been received.

He also pointed out that Rice is a potential future captain, but stated that West Ham would be willing to listen to bank-breaking offers.

Despite heavy spending, Chelsea continue to be plagued by inconsistencies

Kai Havertz has struggled at Chelsea

Considering the huge amounts spent by Chelsea in the transfer market, the bare minimum expectation was a title challenge this season.

However, the club continue to be plagued by the same problems of last season, while the majority of the new signings have failed to make a genuine impact.

So far, Chelsea have won just one of their games against opposition in the top half of the Premier League table. S poor 3-1 defeat to Arsenal has left them in 8th-place, two points worse off than at this same stage last season.