Report: Chelsea in advanced talks to sign two Serie A players for £44m

What's the rumour?

Chelsea are said to have fast-tracked their pursuit of AS Roma duo Edin Dzeko and Emerson Palmieri, looking to bring both players to Stamford Bridge on Monday. According to The Guardian and Football Italia, the transfers could be completed by Monday.

The report states that £44m would only be the base fee with the Italian Serie A club looking to hold out for another £13.2m in add-ons. Although the Blues are unwilling to spend £57.2m in total, they are hoping a deal can be agreed as Antonio Conte looks to strengthen his squad.

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The London club's Italian manager has been on the lookout for a striker to lead the line or as a backup with Alvaro Morata struggling despite a good start to the season. He has also not been impressed with Michy Batshuayi who has been second-choice behind Morata.

Edin Dzeko has struggled this season after winning the Serie A Golden Boot last season

The heart of the matter

Conte has been on the lookout for a no.9 this month. After losing Diego Costa last summer, Chelsea do not have a strong, physical striker leading the line.

"In my idea of football, we need a striker who must be a point of reference, to have these type of combinations. A number nine is an important player - I want him to be a point of reference to our team." - Conte after Chelsea's win over Brighton

Batshuayi had also been linked with a move to Sevilla. The La Liga club were interested in bring him on loan this January. Chelsea were also linked with Premier League strikers Andy Carroll, Peter Crouch and Ashley Barnes.

Rumour rating/probability

8/10

Dzeko is no stranger to the Premier League having spent five seasons with Manchester City, winning two league titles ans two domestic cups. The Bosnian striker is reportedly unhappy at Roma where he has only scored 9 goals this season in 20 appearances.

Emerson Palmieri

The biggest clue was Dzeko's response to Francesco Totti when he was asked prior to their journey to Milan: "This train isn't going to London right?" and Dzeko said: "Not yet!"

Left-back Emerson is yet to get many minutes under his belt but Conte sees him as a backup to Marcos Alonso with no other player available for him to play on the left.

Video: Dzeko discusses the best moments in 2017

Author's take

Dzeko turns 32 in two months so he would be looking for one final big contract at a top club in Europe. This deal could happen with the Guardian report even stating that Dzeko was keen to work with Conte.

Batshuayi could even go the other way if Conte is looking to offload the Belgian striker.