Chelsea are now aiming to sign an "excellent" midfielder in the January transfer window, and there is a belief he would "thrive" in the Premier League.
Giroud makes it clear where Chelsea need to strengthen
Speaking on Monday Night Football, Olivier Giroud suggested the Blues need to bring in an experience striker if they are going to compete for the Premier League title, given that Enzo Maresca is currently working with a lot of young players, who haven't been consistent in front of goal.
Pedro Neto has been the west Londoners' top scorer in the Premier League this season, scoring five goals, one more than Joao Pedro, who has often been deployed in the number 10 role, rather than as a centre-forward.
Liam Delap, on the other hand, has struggled on the injury front, with the Englishman currently out due to a shoulder problem, and at 22-years-old, the former Ipswich Town man may lack the experience to be Maresca's main striker.
In midfield, however, the Italian is blessed with some top-quality options, with Jon Obi Mikel suggesting Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez are building "something special" as a partnership.
Despite Chelsea having Caicedo and Fernandez at the base of midfield, they remain keen on bringing in a new central midfielder, according to journalist Dean Jones, who told TEAMtalk they are now aiming to sign Lens' Mamadou Sangare in the January transfer window.
The likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United are also in the race for Sangare, who only joined the French club in the summer, arriving from Rapid Wien in a £7m deal, but his impressive performances this season have caught the eye of some top clubs.
RC Lens' Mamadou Sangare in action with FC Nantes' Johann Lepenant
The Malian is regarded as a good-value option, and the interested Premier League sides could step up their interest when AFCON reaches its climax in the middle of January.
"Excellent" Sangare "could thrive" in England
Journalist Bence Bocsak certainly believes the 23-year-old could kick on if he were to move to England, saying: "I think he’s the type of profile who would thrive in the Premier League in the future."
Bocsak praises the maestro for his "great speed and acceleration" and describes him as "a nightmare to play against", while he has also displayed his dribbling and tackling ability on a regular basis over the course of the past year.
Mamadou Sangare's key statistics Average per 90 (past year)
Tackles 3.67 (98th percentile)
Successful take-ons 1.32 (94th percentile)
Blocks 1.54 (83rd percentile)
Sangare has been a key player for Lens this season, featuring in all 15 Ligue 1 matches, and the French side are flying high, currently sitting at the top of the table.
As the stats prove, he's a tackling machine, much in the mould of a Caicedo or Chelsea great N'Golo Kante. Caicedo ranks in the 94th percentile himself for tackles while according to StatMuse, Kante is the player who's won the most tackles (175) in a single Premier League season. That came in 2015/16 when he won the league with Leicester.
Bayern Munich's Cassiano Kiala in action with Olympique Lyonnais' Remy Descamps Related
[Chelsea hold London talks to sign "seriously impressive" Bayern Munich player](https://www.footballfancast.com/chelsea-now-enter-transfer-talks-cassiano-kiala-bayern-munich/ "Chelsea hold London talks to sign "seriously impressive" Bayern Munich player")
The Blues have opened negotiations to sign a Bayern Munich ace.
That said, there are question marks over whether Chelsea need to bring in another new central midfielder, given that it will be difficult to displace Fernandez and Caicedo in the starting XI, and they also have Dario Essugo and Romeo Lavia on the books.