Chelsea decided to desert their interest in Douglas Luiz after holding exploratory talks to sign the midfielder on a six-month loan deal this winter.
Rennes defender Jeremy Jacquet was identified as Chelsea’s primary goal for the January transfer window and discussions to bring the 20-year-old to Stamford Bridge had seemed to be headed in the precise direction.
The Blues even went so far as agreeing personal terms with Jacquet, just for the young centre-back to sign for Liverpool as a substitute in a transfer deal value £55million plus £5m in add-ons.
It means Liam Rosenior will finish the campaign with the identical first-team squad he inherited from Enzo Maresca, minus the likes of Axel Disasi, Tyrique George and Kendry Paez, who sealed loan moves away from west London.
Raheem Sterling, meanwhile, left by mutual consent before the deadline, bringing an end to the forward’s desperately underwhelming three-and-a-half 12 months association with the Club World Cup holders.
In keeping with The Athletic, Chelsea had explored the potential of strengthening their options in central midfield in January, with Dario Essugo and Romeo Lavia each unavailable through injury.
A serious thigh problem means Essugo remains to be yet to make a single appearance for Chelsea this season following his arrival from Sporting. The same issue has kept Lavia sidelined since early November.
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The report claims the absence of each Essugo and Lavia is what led Chelsea to make an enquiry for Luiz, who spent the primary half of the campaign on loan at Nottingham Forest from Juventus.
However the Blues’ interest was short-lived – and their pursuit was soon dropped – attributable to the recent type of Andrey Santos and the very fact Lavia is rapidly closing in on his return.
Luiz went on to rejoin Aston Villa on loan for the rest of the season, making his second debut within the side’s 1-0 defeat to Brentford on the weekend.
It’s understood Villa have the choice to sign the 27-year-old Brazil international outright from Juventus for a fee of €25million (£21.5m) in the summertime.
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Facing the media ahead of Chelsea’s Carabao Cup exit by the hands of Arsenal, Rosenior confirmed that Lavia was making significant strides together with his recovery.
The injury-prone midfielder has been out of motion since early November but was pictured back in full training at Cobham for the primary time last week.
‘Romeo is in a very, really good place,’ Rosenior told reporters when asked for an update on Lavia.
‘I just must be certain this last stage of his rehab is basically good.’
On Essugo’s condition, the Chelsea boss added: ‘Dario is clearly just a little bit further behind.’
Should Lavia prove his fitness in time, Rosenior could also be temped to ease the Belgian back in with some minutes against Wolves this weekend.
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