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Chelsea are said to be making plans for the January transfer window, which are likely to involve selling a lot of their fringe players in a bid to generate funds.
West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice is their only transfer target at the moment, according to The Mirror. However, it is unlikely that Chelsea will make a move for the Englishman in this window.
The Hammers value their prized asset £73 million and are said to be unwilling to budge from their stance, which could put Chelsea off in their bid to sign the midfielder.
According to journalist David Ornstein of The Athletic, it is Chelsea manager Frank Lampard who is primarily pushing for the Blues to sign Rice.
In his YouTube show "Ask Ornstein", he said that there are some figures at Chelsea who still hold doubts over Rice's ability.
This doubt, coupled with West Ham being unwilling to move from their valuation of the player, is said to have caused doubts at Stamford Bridge over the feasibility of any potential transfer move for Rice.
Frank Lampard under pressure at Chelsea
Frank Lampard is currently under pressure at Chelsea, with recent results not going the way of the Blues.
Since beating Leeds United 3-1 at Stamford Bridge in the beginning of December, Chelsea have won only one out of six Premier League games and have lost four of those.
They are currently sitting in ninth place in the Premier League, with 26 points from 17 games. After an encouraging start to the season, this dip in form would have definitely alarmed the Stamford Bridge hierarchy, and an inability to arrest the slide is likely to see Lampard lose his job.
In the 2020 summer transfer window, Lampard was backed to the hilt, with several new additions made to the Chelsea squad, totalling around £250 million on new players. Young German stars Timo Werner and Kai Havertz were signed, in addition to Moroccan star Hakim Ziyech.
Ben Chilwell was added to the squad to secure the left-back position, after inconsistencies from both Marcos Alonso and Emerson.
Edouard Mendy replaced Kepa Arrizabalaga in goal. Meanwhile, Thiago Silva came in on a free transfer and has already made an impact, with his know-how and experience.
