Chelsea are reportedly giving serious consideration to turning their attention to Leeds United midfielder Tyler Adams.
At his most recent press conference in the United States, head coach Mauricio Pochettino acknowledged that the Blues were still in the market for new players.
That is despite the addition of young midfielder Lesley Ugochukwu from Rennes, Pochettino hinting that the Frenchman would have a chance to impress him over the coming weeks.
Chelsea now have Enzo Fernandez, Conor Gallagher, Andrey Santos, Carney Chukwuemeka, Cesare Casadei and Ugochukwu as options ahead of the 2023-24 campaign.
Nevertheless, it has been widely documented that Brighton & Hove Albion's Moises Caicedo remains their priority target for the engine room.
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The West Londoners had hoped to have finalised a deal for the Ecuador international by now, only for the Seagulls to insist on receiving a £100m bid for the 21-year-old.
As it stands, there is an impasse between the two sides, as well as Brighton reportedly receiving an offer marginally more than Chelsea's highest proposal, said to be £80m.
According to The Athletic, switching their attention to Adams is becoming an increasingly likely possibility for Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital.
On the back of Leeds' relegation from the Premier League, the United States international is available for £20m due to a clause in his contract.
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Although Chelsea seemingly have the finances to go as high as £100m for Caicedo, they also want to strengthen in other areas, leaving them with little option but to be open to alternatives.
Injury restricted Adams to 24 appearances in the Premier League during 2022-23, with the 24-year-old absent from the middle of March due to a hamstring issue.
While Adams has earned regular game time in recent seasons, he has never played more than 37 times in a single campaign during his entire career.
The report adds that Aston Villa, who have already added Youri Tielemans to their midfield ranks this summer, are also monitoring the situation ahead of a possible approach.
Darren Plant
