Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior will hope to see his side return to winning ways when they face Premier League leaders Arsenal on Sunday.
The Englishman took charge of the Blues last month and enjoyed an impressive start to his tenure, but has watched his side draw against both Leeds United and Burnley in recent weeks.
Last time out the west London outfit surrendered a 1-0 lead against the Clarets, missing out on the chance to take a huge step towards qualification for next season’s Champions League.
Ahead of their trip to The Emirates, it has emerged that Chelsea are interested in a talented youngster from South America.
As per Spanish outlet AS, via CaughtOffside, Chelsea are set to rival La Liga giants Sevilla in the race to sign Independiente del Valle midfielder Patrik Mercado.
The report from Spain claims that Sevilla have reached a verbal agreement to sign the 22-year-old at the end of the current campaign, however a deal has not yet been finalised.
Mercado is on the radar of Chelsea (Photo: Sipa US/Alamy)
Mercado is a product of the Ecuadorian side’s youth system and has now made more than 110 appearances for the club across all competitions.
Sevilla are said to be hoping to sign the midfielder for a fee in the region of £5.2 million this summer, but Chelsea are now said to have approached the Ecuadorian club in relation to a possible deal.
Chelsea have adopted a policy of signing young players from across the world in recent years, and signing Mercado would continue that trend.
Current Blues star, Moises Caicedo, previously starred for Independiente del Valle prior to his time with Brighton and Hove Albion.
Mercado is contracted to his current club until the end of next year, but it appears that the Ecuadorian giants may face a battle to keep hold of the talented midfielder beyond this summer.