Chelsea have not given up hope of Moussa Dembélé from Lyon but may have to wait until the end of January to get their man.
The Blues are free to make signings in this window after the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned their transfer ban.
They have subsequently been linked with players all over Europe, with Dembélé a name that has popped up regularly.
And according to L’Equipe, the interest from Chelsea is there, with them and Manchester United ‘keeping in touch’ about the player.
However, the ‘complex financial equation’ and Giroud’s resistance to the move, he prefers Inter Milan, meant that was never a firm possibility, and the talks went no further.
For now, Chelsea’s interest is on the backburner, but they have not ‘given up hope’ of getting their man.
They may, however, ‘wait until the last week’ of the transfer window before making a ‘substantial offer’ to try and lure the former Celtic and Fulham may back to England.
Lyon are adamant they will not let Dembélé go, particularly in the middle of a disappointing campaign and Dembélé is not pushing for the move.
However, L’Equipe question whether that would remain the case should a ‘major attack’ come from Chelsea or Manchester United.
