Chelsea’s hopes of automatically reaching the knockout stages of the Champions League were dealt a blow on Tuesday as they were beaten 2- by Atalanta.
The Blues had taken the lead in Bergamo courtesy of Pedro Neto, but second half goals from Gianluca Scamacca and Charles De Ketelaere turned the game on its head.
Enzo Maresca’s side now sit 11th in the 36-team group phase table, with only the top eight automatically reaching the knockouts.
Now, with injuries mounting up for Maresca’s side, it appears that the West London outfit are eyeing a January move for a new striker.
As per CaughtOffside, Chelsea are leading the race to sign Strasbourg’s Joaquin Panichelli when the transfer window reopens.
The report claims that the Blues are one of a number of top European clubs keeping tabs on the Argentinian, who has scored nine goals in 15 Ligue 1 matches so far this term.
Panichelli has attracted interest from Chelsea (Photo: Icon Sport/Alamy)
Panichelli, 23, joined Strasbourg from Spanish side Alaves over the summer, and has enjoyed a fine start to life in France, netting ten times in 19 games across all competitions so far.
His impressive run of form has attracted interest from several clubs, with Premier League sides Manchester United and Aston Villa also believed to be monitoring the forward.
Spanish giants Barcelona and Atletico Madrid are both also created with an interest in the Argentine, who made his senior international debut last month.
Chelsea are said to be frontrunners to land the player, though, as they are under the same ownership group – BlueCo – as Ligue 1 side Strasbourg.
Panichelli is under contract at Strasbourg until the end of the 2029/30 campaign, but it appears that some of Europe’s top clubs could be looking to lure the player away as soon as next year.