Chelsea contact forward about summer move despite Tuchel's faith in Werner
Chelsea spent £48 million to sign Timo Werner from RB Leipzig last summer
Chelsea has reportedly made signing a new centre forward a priority when the summer transfer window opens. The west London club is said to have made contact with Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski over a move to Stamford Bridge.
The Blues lost in the FA Cup final, are Champions League finalists while also fighting for a place in the Premier League top four. Despite their on-field successes this season, both Frank Lampard and his successor Thomas Tuchel have struggled to get the forward line firing on a consistent basis.
Chelsea signed Timo Werner to address their goal scoring issues last August but the German striker has failed to adapt to the rigours of the Premier League. He has managed just six goals in 34 league appearances – making it difficult for the manager to rely on him to win matches for the club.
According to Football London, the Blues have made contact with Lewandowski about a move to England in the summer. The Poland international has had yet another stellar season in the Bundesliga, scoring 40 goals in just 28 league appearances.
Lewandowski has won every trophy at club level with Bayern during his impressive seven-year career with the club. Chelsea is hoping to convince the 32-year-old to take on a new challenge in the Premier League having already conquered the Bundesliga.
However, according to the report, Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia will face one hurdle when it comes to pulling off what will potentially be among the biggest moves of the summer. It is believed that the Polish forward is not a big fan of the Premier League and favours a move to Spain instead.
Chelsea boss Tuchel, however, was coy when asked about Chelsea's interest in signing a new striker in the summer. The German refused to deny rumours of a new forward arriving but went on to back Werner to perform well next season.
"You will not find one manager who will not add a 20-goal striker to his squad. I cannot have enough of them, if you can guarantee that," the Chelsea boss told Sky Sports.
"But this is what Chelsea bought, they bought Timo Werner and he is a 20/30-goal striker a year. Now he is struggling a little bit, for the first time in his career," he added. "I have known him since he was 17. He scored every year in youth football. When he was 16 he played under-18, when he was 17 he played under-19 and he never stopped scoring.
"In any transfer, there are risks of adaptations, change of country, change of mentality. It needs time. It's not a puzzle where you identify one piece and you go out and find the exact piece, it's more than that and that's why there is no rush and no panic."
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