Chelsea have not yet submitted a formal offer for Atletico Madrid striker Radamel Falcao, according to Sky Sports.

There were reports that the Blues were targeting the prolific Colombian for a January transfer following his first-half hat-trick against Chelsea in the UEFA Super Cup last month. According to Sky Sports, though, the Europa League winners have not received a concrete proposal and would not welcome one at this stage.

Chelsea are thought to be on the lookout for a striker with just Fernando Torres and Daniel Sturridge as established options for boss Roberto D Matteo. Given that the Italian appears less than keen on Sturridge and Torres is still to rediscover his best form, a big name striker could well be targeted in the January transfer window.

The Sun even claims on Wednesday that Chelsea are already in negotiations with Atletico with a view to a £45 million move. The paper quotes a Chelsea source as saying:

“The groundwork is already being done for Falcao.

“The owner wants everything in place now so a deal can be done before any other club can make a counter-offer.”

While Atletico will be loathed to lose a player who scored 36 goals for them in his debut season last term, the club’s troubled finances are well known and could force their hand if a big enough bid is submitted.

Alternatively Chelsea could reignite their interest in Marseille forward Loic Remy. The France international was thought to be close to joining the Blues on the final day of the transfer window. It has now been reported that Chelsea, along with Premier League rivals Tottenham, remain keen on the 25-year-old, according to Italian source Transfer Market Web.

It doesn’t appear, though, that Chelsea would be successful with an audacious move for reported target Sergio Ramos. After the defender was left out of the Real Madrid side that faced Manchester City last week, amid a reported bust up with manager Jose Mourinho, it had been claimed that Chelsea were monitoring developments with view to launching a January bid.

But the 26-year-old has dismissed reports of a serious problem.

"I do not know if it was a punishment or not, or whether there were technical issues," he said, according to TalkSport.

"It is not for me to say, all I can say on the issue, from my point of view, is that things involving the team stay behind closed doors.

“Real Madrid runs through my veins,” he added.

Chelsea may be better placed to sign another reported defensive target, Montpellier’s Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa. The France international rose to prominence last season as he captained his club to their first ever Ligue 1 title and was then thought to be close to joining Milan during the summer while Arsenal were also interested.

Spanish publication El Mundo Deportivo now claims that Barcelona have joined a race to sign the 23-year-old that also includes Chelsea. Central defense would not appear to be an immediate priority for the Blues with the club’s options currently including John Terry, David Luiz, Gary Cahill and Branislav Ivanovic.