Chelsea will no longer be able to sign £87m attacker in January, they’ll have to wait

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Chelsea will have to wait until next summer if they want to sign Bayer Leverkusen youngster Florian Wirtz.

That is according to a report from TEAMtalk.

It claims that while the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool are both interested in Florian Wirtz, Leverkusen will not sell the attacking midfielder in January and will only allow him to go next summer for a £87m fee.

Leverkusen’s unwillingness to sanction a deal for Wirtz in the winter transfer window comes as no surprise.

He is such a key player for Xabi Alonso’s side, coming up with seven goal contributions in just 10 Bundesliga appearances this season.

Will Chelsea still try and make a move for Florian Wirtz in January?

It seems unlikely. According to TEAMtalk, a No.10 was never a priority for the Blues anyway.

The outlet says that Chelsea’s focus will be on bringing in a new centre-forward and defender.

The club prioritising a new No.9 does make a lot of sense. Nicolas Jackson scored a hat-trick against Tottenham Hotspur earlier this week, but there are still some doubts about him.

The Senegal international is only 22 years of age and was struggling quite a bit before his side’s 4-1 win against Ange Postecoglou’s men. Considering that, it will not hurt Chelsea if they brought in a new striker.

So who exactly could end up arriving at Stamford Bridge?

Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins appears to be one name Chelsea have on their radar, but he recently signed a new deal, so they are going to find it hard to get him out of Villa Park.

It is pretty obvious, though, that Mauricio Pochettino and the club are looking at strikers and have a few different options on their list. It is one reason why Jackson needs to keep scoring as he tries to prove himself in the Premier League.