Chelsea's pursuit of Sevilla centre-back Jules Kounde has reportedly been placed on hold as the Blues prioritise a move for Romelu Lukaku.
Thomas Tuchel has supposedly identified Kounde as a leading centre-back target for the current window, but Sevilla's £68m asking price is hindering progress in negotiations.
Chelsea are thought to be trying to drive the price down with player-plus-cash offers - which are yet to bear fruit - while Kurt Zouma's alleged refusal to move to West Ham United is another stumbling block.
As a result, Sport claims that Chelsea have temporarily cooled their interest in Kounde as they remain determined to bring Lukaku back to Stamford Bridge.
The Inter Milan forward is reported to have already agreed terms over a five-year deal with Chelsea, who are now expected to fork out a nine-figure sum in order to re-sign him this month.
Roman Abramovich is also understood to have been alerted to Lionel Messi's availability, although the six-time Ballon d'Or winner is being heavily tipped to move to Paris Saint-Germain.
Ben Knapton
