FRANK LAMPARD has made contact with Napoli’s Dries Mertens as he looks to bolster his attack, according to reports.
The Chelsea boss will make it a priority to improve his front line this summer as he looks to close the gap on Liverpool and Manchester City.
Lampard has already signed Ajax talent Hakim Ziyech ahead of the new campaign.
And he won’t stop there as he eyes Mertens on a free transfer to provide an injection of pace in his side.
According to Italian publication Gianluca Di Marzio, Lampard has already made direct contact with the player to assess whether he would be interested in a switch across Europe.
Mertens, 32, has yet to decide his future with his contract at Napoli expiring in the summer.
He will not be short of suitors with the coronavirus set to play havoc in the transfer window.
The Belgian was the subject of concrete interest from the West Londoners back in January, but a move failed to materialise.
The former PSV Eindhoven striker is a fan favourite in Naples, as he overtook club legend and all-time leading scorer Marek Hamsik’s 121 goal haul for the San Paolo side last month.
Willian, Pedro and Michy Batshuayi are braced to leave Stamford Bridge in the summer leaving Lampard with a shortage of options in attack.
But Olivier Giroud looks braced to stay for another year with the club set to activate a one-year extension in his contract to avoid losing him for nothing.
