Chelsea have been urged to sign West Ham midfielder Declan Rice to help out Timo Werner and potential new signing Kai Havertz.
Blues boss Frank Lampard is rumoured to be eyeing up the Hammers star as he looks to bolster his defensive options at Stamford Bridge.
Rice, who is valued at £80million, came through the Chelsea academy and is believed to be keen on linking up with some former teammates like Mason Mount.
German international forward Werner has already arrived from RB Leipzig, while Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Havertz is being chased by the Blues.
And former Liverpool defender Steve Nicol thinks the attacking talent that could be on show next year would benefit from the signing of Rice.
“I think [a move for Declan Rice] makes sense,” Nicol told ESPN FC. “I think when you already have N’Golo Kante, if you bring Declan Rice in then you can play all the forwards that seem to be either at Chelsea right now or are going to Chelsea, and by that I mean the likes of Timo Werner who’s there and it seems like Kai Havertz is going to be there as well.
“You can play those two – Declan Rice and N’Golo Kante – as two defensive midfielders and let another four ahead of them get after it in the attack.
“So listen, it makes sense because Declan Rice is a great player, he’s maturing and getting better season after season.
“I don’t think he’s quite hit his peak yet but this would make complete sense to me for Chelsea and I think for Declan Rice as well.”
West Ham are reluctant to allow Rice to leave the London Stadium and have some more bargaining power after assuring their Premier League survival.
Manchester United have also been linked with a move for the 21-year-old but they currently have bigger fish to fry in securing a deal for Jadon Sancho.
Rice usually plays in the centre of midfield for the Hammers but can operate at centre-back and it is here that Lampard is likely to want to play him.
Chelsea have scored goals for fun this season but had one of the leakiest defences in the top half of the Premier League, conceded easily more than a goal a game.
Rice would hopefully help to solve their problems in defence whilst also offering useful versatility to the manager.
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