Chelsea manager Frank Lampard will have a transfer budget of £150m in the summer and will return with a bid for Lyon striker Moussa Dembele, claims the London Evening Standard.
The Premier League outfit wanted to sign Dembele last month but were rebuffed by Lyon at every attempt and eventually conceded defeat in their pursuit of the former Fulham striker.
Chelsea finished the January transfer window without signing a single player and even ended up losing a couple of their most highly rated youngsters from the U23 squad with contracts winding down.
The club's inability to sign a new striker, which Lampard made clear was a priority, particuarly frustrated their 41-year-old head coach but are adamant there will be money to spend at the end of the season.
Lampard intends to return with a bid for Dembele in the summer in an attempt to ease the burden on current first-choice striker Tammy Abraham.
Chelsea's pursuit of a new forward in January made it very clear Lampard does not fancy either Olivier Giroud or Michy Batshuayi, with at least one expected to leave the club in the summer.
With captain Memphis Depay out for the foreseeable future, Lyon simply could not afford to lose Dembele in January, particularly with Champions League knockout football to come.
To make matters worse for Chelsea, Dembele embarked on a stunning run of goalscoring form in January as they desperately scoured the market for a new target on deadline day.
Dembele scored in seven straight games in all competitions in January, netting eight games in the process, and has 12 goals in Ligue 1 for the campaign.
The 23-year-old is only three league goals shy of matching his total from the whole of last season and Lyon still have 16 games remaining this season.
