According to ESPN, Chelsea have made a £26.5m (€30m) bid to sign PSV Eindhoven winger Noni Madueke in the winter transfer window.
The newspaper claims PSV have no interest in selling the 20-year-old but that has not prevented Chelsea tabling a formal bid after making an enquiry last week.
The Blues have been one of the busiest sides this month, having already splashed the cash to sign David Datro Fofana, Andrey Santos, Benoit Badiashile, Joao Felix and Mykhaylo Mudryk as Graham Potter looks to strengthen his squad for the second phase of the season.
Potter wants more attacking options despite bringing in Fofana, Mudryk and Felix – who was sent off on his Chelsea debut at Fulham in the Premier League. The Portugal international will miss the club’s next three games.
Chelsea are struggling for goals this season, netting only 21 times in the league as they lie 10th on the table with 26 points, 10 points behind the fourth-placed Newcastle United.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Kai Havertz have not been able to find the back net consistently for the London-based side, hence the need to bolster the attack to stand any chance of turning their abysmal season around.
Reinforcement
Despite splashing out £88m to sign Mudryk, Potter still wants to add at least one more attacker, and Chelsea have made their move for Madueke having tracked the youngster for some time.
Madueke featured for Crystal Palace and Tottenham prior to moving to the Netherlands, captaining the latter’s under-16 side.
Madueke is attracting from a host of clubs following his impressive performances for PSV last season, making 15 goal contributions in 35 games across all competitions as they finished second in the league and won both the KNVB Cup and Johan Cruyff Shield.
He has continued his fine form this term, scoring two goals in eight appearances in all competitions and was one of the standout players for PSV alongside Cody Gakpo – who join Liverpool earlier this month.
Madueke, who is known for his creativity and ability to score from midfield – has represented England at youth level, making a combine 24 appearances and netting six goals in the process.
It is believed that PSV coach Ruud van Nistelrooy does not want to lose Madueke this window but a huge offer could tempt the club into parting ways with their attacking midfielder.
Read more: Report: Chelsea could sign Spanish star in £10m January deal
