Chelsea welcome League One strugglers Port Vale to Stamford Bridge in the FA Cup on Saturday.
The Blues will be overwhelming favourites to get the better of their opponents and reach the semi-finals of the competition, and Liam Rosenior will be desperate to do so with his side having lost their last four matches.
The ex-Hull City and Strasbourg boss has come under pressure in recent weeks with his side having been in poor form, but it remains to be seen whether the club’s owners will stick with the Englishman or make yet another change at the helm.
In the meantime, however, it appears that Chelsea are set to miss out on one of their transfer targets.
As per CaughtOffside, Chelsea are unlikely to be able to complete an audacious move to sign Arsenal full-back Riccardo Calafiori.
Calafiori was on the radar of Chelsea (Photo: Paul Marriott/Alamy)
The report claims that the Blues have shown interest in the Italy international, who has featured 29 times across all competitions for Mikel Arteta’s side this term.
Despite Chelsea’s interest, the report suggests that Arsenal are very reluctant to sell the full-back to one of their fiercest rivals, making a deal very unlikely.
Calafiori himself is also said to favour the idea of a return to Serie A, with the defender having attracted interest from a number of clubs in his homeland.
The 23-year-old joined Arsenal from Italian outfit Bologna back in 2023 and has since made 58 appearances for Arteta’s side across all competitions.
The Italy international – who featured as they were knocked out of World Cup qualification on Tuesday night – is under contract at The Emirates until the end of the 2028/29 campaign.
Chelsea’s search for defensive reinforcements has reportedly led them to consider Nottingham Forest’s Murillo as a possible candidate ahead of the transfer window.