**Chelsea will seriously consider “signing a midfielder” during the January transfer window, according to _BBC_ reporter Nizaar Kinsella.**
The journalist is usually reliable when it comes to the Blues, and he claims that it is a position that the club are currently looking to strengthen:
“I can tell you with some degree of certainty that Chelsea are open to signing a midfielder in January.”
“That position could change depending on whether they gain some stability in midfield when Moises Caicedo returns, or whether players such as Mahdi Nicoll-Jazuli and Reggie Watson, both 16, are deemed ready by January to make an impact on the fringes of the first-team squad.”
Finding a replacement for Fernandez is a top priority
-----------------------------------------------------
After failing to secure the signature of Lamine Camara from Monaco on Deadline Day, Chelsea left themselves short of options in the middle of the park, having already sanctioned the sale of Enzo Fernandez to Manchester City.
Manager Xabi Alonso has fielded fullbacks Reece James and Malo Gusto as midfielders to make up the numbers, but another specialist is really needed.
Will Chelsea revisit the Camara deal?
-------------------------------------
Relations between the Blues and Monaco are decidedly frosty after the Ligue One side pulled the plug on the move at the start of this month.
While you can’t rule out the deal being revived if relations thaw out over the coming months, it is more likely that sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Lawrence Stewart will pursue alternatives in January.
Roma’s Manu Kone was another player that the club made a move for on Deadline Day, but the deal was blocked after the intervention of head coach Gian Piero Gasperini. There could be scope for reigniting the transfer in the New Year, but [**reports**](https://chelseanews.com/blog/chelsea-transfer-news-manu-kone-5/) suggest that, after an excellent start to the season, the midfielder’s asking price has skyrocketed.