The January transfer window is now into its final hours and it is poised to be a quiet ending to the month for Chelsea.
After splashing out more than £220million during last summer's transfer window, the Blues, who defeated Burnley 2-0 at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, were never expected to launch any moves for anybody this month, regardless of their league position or managerial situation.
After finishing fourth last season, Chelsea made the decision to splash out big-money on the likes of Ben Chilwell, Kai Havertz and Timo Werner in an attempt to get them closer to the title. Although they did threaten to seriously challenge for the title back in December, the Blues' recent form has all but ended those hopes.
Nevertheless, Chelsea are not planning on drafting in anyone else before the bell, meaning their focus has already switched to the summer window, with Thomas Tuchel, who replaced Frank Lampard last week, already looking to put plans in place.
According to reports over the last few days, Tuchel has already earmarked David Alaba of Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig ace Dayot Upamecano and Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland as targets. With that in mind, Chelsea could be set to launch a raid on the Bundesliga ahead of next season, as Tuchel will look to try and put his own stamp of authority on the squad he inherited from Lampard.
Another name who is being closely linked with a move to Stamford Bridge is Barcelona ace Ousmane Dembele. The French winger is currently happy in Spain and is happy to commit his long-term future to the club if the required demands are met.
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However, with a plethora of Spanish clubs facing financial troubles as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Barcelona may be forced to cash-in on the winger and recoup some of the money they have lost.
Should that prove to be the case, no shortage of clubs would refuse turn their noses up at the chance of signing the speedy, skilful winger. Amongst them would be Chelsea, who, according to a report by Sport, are going to 'push hard' in the hope of securing his signature, with both Manchester United and Juventus also keen.
Chelsea, though, may feel as though they will hold an advantage over their rivals in the race to sign Dembele given that he has worked with Tuchel in the past at Dortmund. They worked together in Germany for one season, with Dembele scoring 10 goals and registering 21 assists during the 2016/17 campaign.
With Dembele having dazzled under Tuchel's leadership, it is only natural that the German would be interested in working with him once again.
Back in 2019, Tuchel, whilst in charge at Paris Saint-Germain, waxed lyrical about the 23-year-old.
"Ousmane is an incredible player, he's really talented," Tuchel said two years ago, as quoted by bleachreport.com. "I could watch his amazing skills in every training session.
"He's also a great human being. He's a little crazy. He's a really nice boy but a little crazy. He loves to laugh but can also have very serious conversations. It's never boring with him.
"If he's focused enough, he can reach any level. When I talked to him for the very first time, he told me that he wanted to play for Barcelona. That's where he is now.
"It means he can reach any level, but he needs to remain focused and improve each day."
Judging by those comments, it is clear that Tuchel is a huge fan of Dembele's, with the youngster having proven to him what he is truly capable of at a very young age.
Now that Dembele has since grown that little older and experienced playing at Barcelona, it would be fair to assume that he has got even better.
With that in mind, plus taking into account Tuchel's history with him, Chelsea may wish to set their sights on Dembele and make him their statement signing this summer if finances permit.
