Marina Granovsakia faces key Chelsea transfer challenge with Thomas Tuchel desire unfulfilled

Chelsea were never going to be busy in the January transfer window. Thomas Tuchel didn't need nor want the club to be. The only area that was in need of attention was left wing-back and there was a clear candidate in the mind of the German to fill the void left by Ben Chilwell.

"We are evaluating it and we are looking into this position and yes, bringing back Emerson is one of the options," the Chelsea head coach said at the beginning of January. "We are in talks with the staff and the board and the scouting department, checking possibilities.

"We always do but given the long-term injuries, we are looking into the market and the possibilities. But things have to make sense in terms of the person, the position, and of course the quality."

Tuchel felt Emerson was the best option for several reasons: he had worked with the Italian international last season; he admired the defender's professionalism; there would be no adaptation period; Emerson understood the German coach's tactical structure.

The problem was Chelsea failed to include a recall clause in the loan deal that Emerson agreed with Lyon in the summer. So the Blues suffered the ignominy of offering compensation to the Ligue 1 side of around £3million for the 27-year-old.

Unfortunately for Chelsea, Lyon refused to budge. Emerson is the club's first-choice left-back and has impressed this season. There was little incentive for the club to let him leave, especially after they agreed a £35m deal for Bruno Guimaraes with Newcastle United.

The moment the Blues ended their attempt to reclaim Emerson was the point at which the club's January transfer window was effectively over. There were other options Chelsea could have turned to – Barcelona's Sergino Dest was