Chelsea are reportedly set to launch a fresh bid for West Ham star Declan Rice as they still chase him ahead of the January transfer window.
The England international was strongly linked with the Blues for much of the summer, though in the end a deal never materialised as they focused on strengthening their attack.
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However, the Daily Star claim Rice remains a priority for Chelsea manager Frank Lampard, who wants a different style of defensive midfielder to Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic, while N’Golo Kante’s future has been in some doubt of late.
Former West Ham defender Paul Konchesky recently told CaughtOffside he felt it was only a matter of time before Rice was snapped up by Chelsea or another bigger club.
The 21-year-old is a huge talent and he’s having another fine start to this season after impressing in the last couple of years.
Chelsea will surely have to pay big for Rice, however, with a price tag of around £70million or more previously touted in the press.
West Ham have often lost their best young players to bigger clubs, with Frank Lampard and Joe Cole notably leaving the Hammers for Chelsea.
Meanwhile, the likes of Rio Ferdinand and Michael Carrick ended up at Manchester United, and Jermain Defoe at Tottenham.