Behind the scenes at Chelsea - Ivan Toney wait, Ousmane Diomande transfer, Conor Gallagher deal

A look at what is going on behind the scenes at Chelsea in terms of transfer business with January being an uncharacteristically quiet month for Todd Boehly's Blues

We are more than midway into this month's transfer window and in a rather extraordinary turn of events, Chelsea have not signed a single player yet. With all of what's happening with the Premier League and its Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR), there is a feeling that clubs from the top-flight are being extremely cautious this month.

Chelsea, though, believe they are well within the guidelines of the PSR so buying a player or two this window is not out of the question whatsoever. A striker and a centre-back remains the club's priority, but getting their desired targets into the club before the end of the month could prove quite the challenge.

For instance, while both Ivan Toney and Victor Osimhen are on Chelsea's radar right now, the strikers are seen as virtually unattainable in the mid-season window. Chelsea will not pay what they deem to be 'over the odds' for a centre-forward this month and would rather bide their time until the summer.

A source, however, has told football.london not to rule out a short-term option at striker. Karim Benzema was linked earlier in the week with the striker reportedly wanting to leave Al-Ittihad but it is not an option the Blues are believed to be pursuing at the time of writing.

There were reports from Portugal earlier in the week suggesting Chelsea had bid £73million for Sporting CP forward Viktor Gyokeres. However, football.london understands that is not the case and Chelsea do not even hold an interest in the 25-year-old striker.

A centre-back is also on the agenda for Chelsea. We know of a three names on a shortlist the club are currently looking at that includes Ousmane Diomande from Sporting, Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace and Jean-Clair Todibo from OGC Nice.

READ MORE: Chelsea have already held talks for £69m defender as Liverpool join transfer race

READ MORE: Chelsea FFP worries eased with £300m transfer solution but Conor Gallagher issue remains

The Blues opened talks with Sporting last month regarding a move for Diomande, who is currently representing Ivory Coast at the Africa Cup of Nations. The 20-year-old defender is also believed to be a target for Liverpool.

Sporting, however, have told clubs that if they want to get Diomande this month, then they will have to pay his £69million release clause. Chelsea are reluctant to pay such a fee, especially given the PSR stuff going on right now with other clubs, so it is likely they will wait until the summer when Sporting may be more willing to conduct business.

That's pretty much it for Chelsea in terms of potential incomings. Unless there's something going on behind the scenes that has not been made public yet, then it looks as if the club will endure an uncharacteristically quiet window.

There is, however, scope to do some business. There are a number of Chelsea players that could leave this month, whether that's on a loan deal or on a permanent basis.

Armando Broja is one of them. West Ham United and a number of unnamed Premier League clubs hold an interest in the Cobham graduate, football.london understands. Because Broja is a previous member of the club's academy, it is much more appealing for the owners to move him on as they will generate something known as pure profit, that massively helps with hitting the PSR guidelines.

It is a similar story with Conor Gallagher. football.london was told earlier in the month that the England international, in an ideal world, would want to stay at Stamford Bridge this month, and Mauricio Pochettino wants to keep him as well.

There are some members of the Chelsea hierarchy, however, that view the sale of Gallagher as the logical thing to do. The 23-year-old will not be short of suitors, with Tottenham one of the numerous clubs understood to be keeping a close eye on his situation.

Trevoh Chalobah is another Chelsea academy product that could leave the club this month. The 24-year-old has not played this season due to injury and has plenty of interest in his signature. There are a number of Premier League sides – including Fulham – that are interested in signing the defender.

Andrey Santos was recently recalled from his loan spell at Nottingham Forest with the Premier League side not playing the 19-year-old midfielder enough for Chelsea's liking. Pochettino admitted recently that a decision had not yet been made on whether the club would loan Santos out again or if he would stay with the senior squad for the remainder of the campaign.

football.london Chelsea WhatsApp channel

Want to keep up to date with the breaking and important Chelsea stories whilst on the move? Well now you can!

Click this link to follow the football.london Chelsea WhatsApp channel, where you'll be kept up to date on the latest Blues news wherever you are.

Just remember to turn on the notifications once you've followed, and you won't miss a beat!