Chelsea continued their fine run of form with a superb 5-1 victory at Southampton on Wednesday night.
Defender Axel Disasi headed the Blues into an early lead at St. Mary’s, before Joe Aribo drew the hosts level.
Christopher Nkunku then restored the Blues’ advantage, before Noni Madueke added a third.
Saints captain Jack Stephens was then sent off for pulling Marc Cucurella’s hair after a VAR intervention, and Chelsea added two more goals after the break courtesy of Cole Palmer and substitute Jadon Sancho.
The result leaves Enzo Maresca’s side second in the Premier League table, with the gap to leaders Liverpool cut to seven points after the Reds were held to a 3-3 draw by Newcastle United at St. James’ Park.
Next up for the Blues is a London derby against fierce rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, but in the meantime it has emerged that Chelsea are battling it out with another North London side off the pitch.
According to CaughtOffside, both Chelsea and Arsenal are on the hunt for a new striker, with the two clubs drawing up very similar shortlists of potential targets.
Isak scored against Liverpool on Wednesday
The report claims that the two sides have both identified Juventus’ Dusan Vlahovic, Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak and on-loan Galatasaray striker Victor Osimhen as possible targets.
Vlahovic, 24, has scored an impressive 50 goals in 117 games for the Old Lady since joining the club in 2022.
Nigeria international Osimhen, meanwhile, is currently on loan at Galatasaray from Serie A side Napoli.
He has scored 76 times in 133 games for Napoli, and was heavily linked with a move to the Premier League during the recent summer transfer window.
That never materialised, though, and after the window slammed shut in the vast majority of European countries, Osimhen eventually joined Turkish side Galatasaray.
The report claims that, while Arsenal and Chelsea have both Osimhen and Vlahovic on their respective lists of targets, the two London sides are also eyeing a potential move for Newcastle United’s Isak.
The Swede netted during the Magpies’ 3-3 draw against Liverpool on Wednesday, taking his tally for the club to 41 goals in 81 games across all competitions.
Despite their interest, the report suggests that the Gunners and the Blues would likely have to pay a fee in excess of £83 million to land the Sweden international.
That could potentially deter the two London sides, who the report claims are now assessing alternative targets.