Chelsea are reportedly interested in signing either AC Milan defender Theo Hernandez or Inter Milan full-back Federico Dimarco.
In the three transfer windows since their arrival at Stamford Bridge, co-owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital have spent approximately £1bn on new players.
As it stands, that has not led to any success, with Chelsea again spending time in the bottom half of the Premier League table having accumulated just five points from six games.
Nevertheless, that is unlikely to halt their efforts in the transfer market, regardless of their ongoing issues with FFP, and acquiring a new full-back may be a possibility in 2024.
While Mauricio Pochettino is arguably covered on both sides of the pitch, the long-term future of Marc Cucurella remains a hot topic for debate.
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The 25-year-old has failed to justify his £62m price tag since arriving from Brighton & Hove Albion last summer, making a total of 28 starts and seven substitute outings in all competitions.
Cucurella marginally enhanced his stock at the West Londoners by featuring in a 1-0 win over his former club in the EFL Cup on Wednesday night, having to deputise at right-back.
However, a recent report indicated that he is already setting his sights on a January exit, a consequence of not featuring for a single minute in the Premier League during 2023-24.
According to Calciomercato, Chelsea hold an interest in each of Hernandez and Dimarco courtesy of their performances at San Siro.
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Hernandez is a key player at AC Milan, contributing 25 goals and 28 assists from his 173 appearances in all competitions, while he holds a contract until 2026.
Meanwhile, Dimarco, who has the same amount of time left on his terms at Inter, has nine goals and 18 assists from his 105 appearances.
Both Italian clubs will not want to sell either player, yet it remains to be seen how they would react to a sustained pursuit from Chelsea.
The report adds that it would most likely take "a super offer" to convince AC Milan or Inter into a sale, or for either player to choose to end their stints in Serie A.
Darren Plant
