Here is your Chelsea morning digest on Monday, December 21.
Arsenal's role in Blues' pursuit of Rice
Chelsea are willing to pay West Ham United's £80m asking price for Declan Rice because of Arsenal signing Thomas Partey.
That's according to the Telegraph, who claim that the Blues had Partey on their radar before he ended up moving to the Gunners.
This means that signing Rice is an even more attractive proposition for Frank Lampard, and they have been linked with a January move for the England midfielder.
The 21-year-old will likely feature for West Ham this evening, as the Hammers take on Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
Werner's Premier League admission
Chelsea striker Timo Werner has admitted that the Premier League has taken him by surprise, as the pressure on him grows following a difficult spell in front of goal.
Werner has failed to score in his last eight outings in all competitions after a fine start to life in England, and he has now opened up on how it's been for him at Stamford Bridge.
“The Premier League is a little bit different to the old league that I used to play in,” Werner said.
“I have to say it’s tougher than I thought. The contact here is harder than in Germany.
“I think it’s also hard when you play every three days and the Champions League, then you have to play on Saturday against teams that can rest the whole week."
Read more from Werner here.
Ziyech's Instagram message after injury boost
Hakim Ziyech is set to return to action this evening, as Lampard confirmed the attacker had a chance of making the squad for the West Ham clash.
Ziyech has been sidelined since injuring his hamstring in the 3-1 victory against Leeds United earlier this month and his absence has been felt, with a lack of creativity in the Blues side.
The Morocco international has been active on one of his social media accounts since the news that he may return to the Chelsea side for Monday night's game.
Posting on his Instagram story, Ziyech had a message for defender Fikayo Tomori - who celebrated his 23rd birthday on Saturday.
It simply read: "Happy birthday broski", accompanied by two birthday cake emojis.
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