Chelsea could potentially save up to £87million on Ousmane Dembele if the Thomas Tuchel favourite was to complete a move to the European Champions before the January deadline.

With only 11 days remaining of the transfer window, it looked as though things were petering out for the west Londoners, who were only looking to secure a left-wing-back replacement.

However, Dembele's recent issues at Barcelona have alerted many clubs across Europe of the potential that is now there to secure a player who once had a transfer value of £100m for a much reduced fee.

SOC

Ousmane Dembele: 'I'm Not Going to Give in to Blackmail'

"We've talked and talked, made various offers. We've tried to find a way but these offers have been systematically rejected by his agents… it seems obvious he does not want to continue at Barca and is not committed to Barca's future project," Barca director Mateu Almeny said via AFP reporter Tom Allnutt.