Here is your Chelsea morning digest on Thursday, January 14.
Dybala update
Chelsea have not made any contact with Juventus about the possibility of signing forward Paulo Dybala, according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano.
Dybala's future with the Italian club has been in doubt following reports they would look to sell him if he turns down the offer of a lucrative new contract.
The Argentina international's current deal runs until the summer of 2022 and he has been linked with a move to the Premier League.
Chelsea have been credited with an interest, along with Tottenham and Manchester United.
Speaking on his ‘Here We Go Podcast’, Romano said: “Someone is asking me about Dybala because he is not extending at the moment his contract with Juventus, so there is nothing decided, but if he doesn’t extend his contract with Juventus before the summer, I think he will leave Juventus.
“I want to say that Chelsea have not made any contact with Dybala or his agent.
“They want to defend players like (Kai) Havertz or (Hakim) Ziyech. They are happy with them.
“Obviously, they need time to be at their best level, in particular Havertz needs time, he’s so young, but they spend like €100m on Havertz, so they don’t want to say after one year we’ll go with Dybala and Havertz will sit on the bench, so at the moment there is nothing between Chelsea and Dybala”
Haaland boost
Chelsea have been handed a major boost in their hopes of signing Borussia Dortmund sensation Erling Haaland.
According to reports in the Italian media at the end of December, Frank Lampard, the Chelsea head coach, has told the club's hierarchy that he would like to add the talented 20-year-old to his squad during this month's transfer window.
Chelsea's current form has raised questions about the state of the squad, despite splashing out more than £220million on seven new additions last summer, leading to reports that the Blues may need to add a new big-name star to their ranks in an attempt to get the juices flowing once again.
But, in truth, the chances of Chelsea spending vast amounts of money this month are highly unlikely, despite them being linked with both Haaland and West Ham United midfield enforcer Declan Rice.
Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which is preventing supporters from attending matches and getting the turnstiles moving, clubs are not making anywhere near as much revenue as they would in usual circumstances.
However, by the time the summer transfer window rolls around ahead of the start of the 2021/22 season, there is hope that the situation with the pandemic will be entirely different and supporters, certainly in some aspect, will have started to make their returns.
Should that prove to be the case, clubs will be able to find more wriggle room to splash the cash on potential new signings once again.
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Ampadu surprise
A member of Chelsea’s loan army was in inspired form on Tuesday night and might have handed Frank Lampard his best surprise of the transfer window.
Ethan Ampadu is on-loan for the season at Sheffield United and they have been having a right old time of it so far in 2019/20 - until Tuesday.
Ampadu and his Blades teammates finally picked up their first win of the season at the 18th time of asking as they beat a poor Newcastle United side 1-0 at Bramall Lane, Billy Sharp bagging the all-important goal from the spot against the Toon, who had Ryan Fraser sent off on the stroke of half time.
The Welshman has been a regular for Chris Wilder’s side this season, playing 12 times though Ampadu’s teammates have struggled defensively as they have shipped 29 goals in 18 games before earning that elusive clean sheet against the Toon Army.
Ampadu looked every bit the promising prospect he is on Tuesday, completing 88% of his passes, winning three tackles, making three interceptions and four clearances in a man of the match performance for the Blades exactly when they needed it.
The 20-year-old is still searching for consistency in his game but with his display last night, Lampard and his coaching staff in west London will have been thrilled by what they saw.
