Chelsea have reportedly approached PSV Eindhoven with a bid of €30m (£26.6m) for attacker Noni Madueke.
The former Crystal Palace and Tottenham Hotspur academy starlet has made quite the name for himself since making the move to the Eredivisie giants in the summer of 2018.
Since coming through the PSV youth ranks, Madueke has made 80 appearances for Ruud van Nistelrooy's team in all tournaments, scoring 20 goals and setting up 14 more.
Madueke enjoyed a breakthrough campaign last year with nine goals and six assists in 35 outings, but a serious ankle injury has restricted the 20-year-old to just nine appearances and two goals this season.
The England Under-21 international is under contract with PSV until the summer of 2025, but the Dutch powerhouses are fighting an uphill battle to retain his services in the coming months.
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Chelsea are believed to have been keeping a close eye on Madueke's progress in the Netherlands, and the Blues have now seemingly stepped up their interest in the youthful attacker.
According to ESPN, Graham Potter's side have tabled their first offer for Madueke worth €30m (£26.6m), despite being told in an enquiry that the 20-year-old was not for sale.
PSV have already lost one key attacker this month, with Cody Gakpo leaving to join Liverpool in a £37m deal, and Van Nistelrooy does not want to see his ranks slimmed further.
However, the ex-Manchester United striker has admitted that Chelsea's interest in Madueke 'worries' him, although he is determined to retain the Englishman's services for the time being.
Speaking at a press conference, Van Nistelrooy said: "I know of the interest in Noni. I'd rather not have that, but it's not something I decide. The fact that there's a lot of interest in him is of course due to his quality and his performances.
"But I do find it worrying. Because we've to see if we're able to keep him, I hope so very much. We will certainly do everything we can [to keep him.] But you also know that things can change real quick if the interest heats up.
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"As a club, you've got to be ready and have replacements lined up because if he leaves it would mean that we lose another player this winter. I've already indicated earlier what my wish was: that no player would leave in the winter break.
"That also applied to Gakpo and that applies to every player. As a coach, you just want to keep your best players, that's clear. But there can also be situations like with Cody [Gakpo], where a certain type of club comes with a certain offer.
"Then it might be that it's no longer possible to stop the deal from taking place. I hope that's not going to be the scenario this time, but I can not exclude it."
Chelsea have reinforced their attacking ranks in January with the signings of Joao Felix, David Datro Fofana and Mykhaylo Mudryk, although the former is currently serving a three-game ban after seeing red on his debut against Fulham on Thursday, one day after his loan from Atletico Madrid was confirmed.
Meanwhile, Mudryk was presented to Chelsea fans at Stamford Bridge during Sunday's 1-0 Premier League win over Crystal Palace after the Blues pipped Arsenal to the signature of the ex-Shakhtar Donetsk man.
Mudryk has signed a seven-and-a-half year deal for a reported £88.5m, and he could make his debut for the Blues when they meet Liverpool at Anfield next Saturday.
Ben Knapton
