Talks held: Chelsea in contact over transfer likely to cost more than £57m | OneFootball

Chelsea have reportedly been in contact with the agent of Aston Villa striker Jhon Duran in the last few days, according to Simon Phillips.

The Blues seem to be weighing up a potential move to rival West Ham for Duran, following the news that the Hammers had made a £57m bid for the Colombia international, which was rejected.

As Phillips notes, Chelsea were close to signing Duran in the summer, so it’s perhaps not surprising that they’re in the conversation again, even if the reporter suggests it’s unlikely they’d be able to pay more than the £57m West Ham have tried offering.

Duran has shone during his time at Villa Park, even if he’s not always been an automatic starter for Unai Emery’s side, and it’s easy to see him shining at a bigger club.

Jhon Duran looks like the striker Chelsea need

Jhon Duran is once again being linked with Chelsea (Photo by Matt McNulty/Getty Images)

Chelsea have been patient with the development of young Senegalese striker Nicolas Jackson, and at times it’s looked like paying off, but overall it’s probably time for a change.

Enzo Maresca will surely see that Jackson isn’t quite consistent enough, and misses too many good chances, and someone like Duran could probably be an upgrade.

Chelsea have also been linked with Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap in another recent report from Phillips’ Substack, so that could be another name to watch.

Both Duran and Delap are fine young players with the potential to improve, and it will be exciting to see if CFC can get them in before the end of the January window.

Villa fans may be wondering, however, if they should really be considering letting Duran go at this moment in time, with Emery surely needing to play the 21-year-old more often in order to keep him happy and put these rumours to bed.