West Ham United's initial trepidation over losing captain Declan Rice this summer has slowly turned to cautious optimism as the Hammers continue to be linked with some big names.
David Moyes will be eager to use some of the cash Rice's sale brings to strengthen other positions, but a new central midfielder is surely top of his wishlist this summer.
Arsenal, Manchester United, Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Chelsea are all reported to be in the running for Rice, who could attract a fee in excess of £100m, though The Sun claims the latter are the preferred choice for the Hammers.
That is because there is a possibility that Conor Gallagher – who himself is valued at £50m by Chelsea, according to the Daily Mail – could be used in part-exchange for Rice, leaving plenty of money left over to bring in a defender and a striker.
What can Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher bring to West Ham United?
After impressing on loan with another London side in Crystal Palace two seasons ago, Gallagher was given a chance – of sorts – by Chelsea last time out in what was a poor campaign for the Blues, who lurched from one manager to another.
While almost half of Gallagher's 35 Premier League appearances last season came as a substitute, the six-cap England international was still able to showcase his talents.
Gallagher scored three goals and assisted another, while the nine yellow cards he received – the most of any Chelsea player – also highlights the tenacious side of his game.
As pointed out by sports writer PGR Analytics, Gallagher has a "relentless work rate" and is a "threat in the final third" – qualities that Hammers fans would surely love to see.
While not a like-for-like replacement for Rice in a direct sense, there are some similarities between the two men. Gallagher is a more attacking player, as reflected in his 0.22 goals and assists per 90 last season, compared to 0.14 for Rice.
As per FBref, Rice has a slightly better pass percentage than Gallagher per 90 minutes (86.5 v 81.1), while they average 68 and 63 touches per 90 – not a huge deal of difference.
Gallagher's arrival at West Ham would certainly excite fans, even if the £50m price tag seems a little excessive. However, in the same week Jude Bellingham joined Real Madrid for a fee rising to £115m, Gallagher boasts many similar attributes to his international colleague.
Indeed, FBref's comparison tool ranks Bellingham as the player most like Gallagher across Europe's top five leagues in terms of their statistical profiles.
For example, they find the target from a similar number of shots (39.3% for Gallagher at Chelsea, compared to 34.8% for Bellingham at Borussia Dortmund), have a near identical pass-completion percentage (81.1 v 81.7) and tackle at a similar rate (2.56 per game v 2.54), all per 90 via FBref.
This is not to say Gallagher is on the same level as Bellingham right now, but as a replacement for Rice, and with a huge sum of cash left over for one or two other players, it is a deal that could make lots of sense for West Ham as they look to move on from their long-serving skipper.