Chelsea transfer news: Conte 'eyeing up Sergio Aguero to replace Diego Costa'

Chelsea transfer news: John Terry set for Bournemouth switch

12 January

The London Evening Standard believes "there could be a remarkable twist in Chelsea's season" with the Premier League leaders allegedly ready to loan John Terry to Bournemouth.

Boss Antonio Conte has recalled Nathan Ake to Stamford Bridge halfway through his loan spell with the South Coast club, and the Standard says that the 21-year-old defender's return "could spell further problems" for Terry.

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It's believed that Conte will offer the Cherries the 36-year-old Terry instead of Ake because he no longer thinks the veteran defender's face fits at the Bridge.

Sent off after 65 minutes in last weekend's FA Cup win against Peterborough, Terry has become a liability as well as surplus to requirements, and it seems likely that Chelsea will farm him out to Bournemouth until the end of the season, and when his contract expires and he'll leave the club permanently.

Meanwhile one Blue who won't be going anywhere this month is striker Michy Batshuayi. The Belgian has found game time hard to come by since arriving at the Bridge from Marseille in the summer, but despite recent rumours suggesting he could be loaned out, the Daily Star says that Conte "is convinced he can still get something out of Batshuayi" and expects the 23-year-old to fight for spot in his starting line-up in the second half of the season.

Chelsea transfer news: West Ham fight for Michail Antonio

11 January

West Ham are ready to fight off any attempts by Chelsea to sign their top scorer Michail Antonio. That's according to the London Evening Standard, which says Chelsea gaffer Antonio Conte likes the look of the 26-year-old Antonio and is weighing up an approach for the England star.

Antonio has netted eight Premier League goals this season and his versatility means he can slot in anywhere from right-back to centre-forward. The Standard says that Conte was "particularly impressed with his performance in the EFL Cup tie between the teams" back in October when the Hammers emerged 2-1 victors.

Antonio arrived in east London from Nottingham Forest on a four-year, £7m deal in September 2015, and such has been his progress that last year he was drafted into the England squad. But after such a meteoric rise it is no surprise that West Ham are said to be "extremely reluctant" to sell Antonio and will not give in easily to Chelsea's overtures.

Meanwhile Goal.com says that Conte has identified Cologne's Jonas Hector as another of "his priority signings" before the end of the January transfer window as he looks to bring in additional wing-backs for highly successful 3-4-3 system.

Hector, 26, has become a regular for Germany over the past two years and was linked to Arsenal last year but it seems the Blues are in line to lure him from the Rhineland.

Chelsea transfer news: Shock move for Fernando Llorente

10 January

Swansea striker Fernando Llorente is on the brink of becoming a Blue, reports the Daily Star with the paper saying that the league leaders will take the 31-year-old on loan until the end of the season.

Antonio Conte knows Llorente from their time together at Juventus and the Star even goes so far to declare that a short-term deal "has been agreed". Apparently Conte is fretting about the lack of options to cover Diego Costa should he get crocked and he sees Llorente "as the ideal deputy".

As for Swansea, they'll fill the void left by Llorente's departure to London by snapping up Anderlecht's Aaron Leya Iseka, who is the 19-year-old brother of Chelsea frontman Michy Batshuayi, the player most likely to have his prospects damaged by the arrival of Llorente at Stamford bridge.

Danish defender defender Simon Kjaer "has emerged as the surprise choice" for Conte in this month's transfer window, claims Talksport. The broadcaster says that the Blues are preparing a £15m bid for the Fenerbahce blocker, although admittedly they've gleaned their information from Italian source Gazetta dello Sport.

The 27-year-old Kjaer is one of the most reliable performers in the Turkish league and having read the glowing reports from his Chelsea scouts, Conte sees the defensive Dane as the ideal man to toughen up his back-line for the second half of the season.

With nearly 60 appearances for his country, Kjaer can also bring vast amounts of experience to Stamford Bridge and Talksport says that while Fenerbahce are "reluctant" to part with the player they "will sit round the negotiating table" to discuss any offer that the Blues may submit.

Chelsea transfer news: Man Utd join battle for Calhanoglu

6 January

Manchester United are Chelsea's biggest rivals in the race to sign Hakan Calhanoglu, reports the Daily Express, with the paper reporting that the Turkey international "could leave for around £17m in January".

Currently dazzling for Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, the 22-year-old playmaker has carved out a sizeable reputation for himself with a knack of scoring spectacular free-kicks. Antonio Conte has already sent his scouts to Germany to run the rule over the young midfielder and the Express says the Blues boss sees Calhanoglu as a natural replacement for the recently-departed Oscar.

But Chelsea will face competition from United, as well as Barcelona, and the Express claims that the Premier League leaders "may struggle to persuade him to opt for Stamford Bridge over Old Trafford".

Meanwhile Oscar's flight to the Far East has been followed by John Obi Mikel with Reuters reporting that the Nigeria midfielder has become the latest big name player "to join the Chinese Super League gold rush".

Having become surplus to requirements at the Bridge under Conte, the 29-year-old Mikel has signed for Tianjin Teda on a free transfer. It's believed the deal will net the playmaker £140,000-a-week.

Chelsea transfer news: Franck Kessie set to sign this month

05 January

Negotiations are underway between Chelsea and Atalanta over the signing of 20-year-old midfielder Franck Kessie, says the London Evening Standard. The paper reports that Antonio Conte is keen to broker a deal this month, although Atalanta "are doing their utmost to postpone any potential deal until the end of the season".

There have been conflicting rumours about the Blues interest in the Ivory Coast international with Kessie's agent claiming Chelsea had had a £21.3m bid rejected, although the Standard says "no formal offer had been made".

But the Premier League leaders - whose 13-match winning streak was ended last night by Tottenham - are genuinely keen on the young playmaker and are quietly confident that a deal will be agreed within this month's transfer window. That, adds the Standard, is likely to result in Ruben Loftus-Cheek being loaned out, with Championship side Brighton the current favourites to take the 20-year-old on loan, although West Ham are also interested in the midfielder.

Meanwhile Caughtoffside claims that Chelsea "face some serious competition" for Middlesbrough's Ben Gibson and Burnley's Michael Keane, two defenders who have been linked to Stamford Bridge in recent weeks.

With the sands of time running down on John Terry's Chelsea career, the Blues are on the lookout for fresh defensive blood, but apparently Everton have also identified the young centre-backs as brimming with potential, and Toffees boss Ronald Koeman hopes to persuade the pair a move to Goodison Park would result in regular game time, which might not be the case at the Bridge.

Chelsea transfer news: Batshuayi stays as Cavani hopes fade

4 January

They are the top dogs in England and now Chelsea have slapped down a French rival, telling Lille where to shove their bid for Michy Batshuayi.

According to the London Evening Standard, the French Ligue 1 side are "interested in taking the Belgium international on loan" for the second half of the season but their offer has been given short shrift at Stamford Bridge, despite the fact Batshuayi has barely featured for the Blues this season.

Boss Antonio Conte is said to be concerned that should any injury befall lead striker Diego Costa between now and May he'd be left short of cover were he to sanction a short-term move to Lille for Batshuayi.

Another reason for Conte's reluctance to part with Batshuayi can be found at Talksport with the broadcaster claiming that Chelsea's hopes of signing Edinson Cavani are disappearing over the horizon.

The Blues and Manchester United have both been linked to the Paris Saint-Germain frontman who is Ligue 1's top scorer this season with 18 goals in 17 games. And although Conte would love to bring the Uruguayan to Stamford Bridge it is now believed that he is close to agreeing a new deal with PSG that would keep the 29-year-old in the French capital until June 2020.

As for Chelsea's defence, the Daily Star says that Conte is tailing Juventus ace Alex Sandro. The pair know each other from their time together at the Turin club and according to Italian news outlet CalcioMercato Conte is "keen to snap up the left-back" this month.