Bielsa turns to Lampard and Chelsea in bid to bolster Leeds defence

Leeds are reportedly keeping tabs on Chelsea defender Fikayo Tomori ahead of the January window, as Marcelo Bielsa looks to bolster his defence.

The Argentine revealed last week that he has no plans to buy a defender in the new year, despite Robin Koch being ruled out for three months.

However, a loan deal has not been ruled out and Football Insider claims that the Elland Road outfit are monitoring Tomori.

The 22-year-old’s game time at Chelsea has been limited this season. Indeed, the England defender has featured in only one of the club’s 18 Premier League and Champions League outings.

The report adds that Frank Lampard may be willing to loan him out for the second half of the campaign.

West Ham had originally tried to bring in the player back in October, but an agreement could not be reached.

Kurt Zouma and summer signing Thiago Silva have emerged as Chelsea’s first-choice centre-back partnership.

And with Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger also on their books, Tomori needs to move on for game time.

The Blues are not keen on a sale, however, which appears to suit Leeds down to the ground.

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Bielsa growing short on options

Bielsa is short of options following injuries to summer signings Robin Koch and Diego Llorente, as well as Gaetano Berardi.

Koch has been ruled out for at least three months after undergoing knee surgery, while Llorente broke down with another hamstring injury against Chelsea and will be sidelined for a few more weeks.

Luke Ayling played as a makeshift centre-back in last Friday’s 2-1 defeat against West Ham. However, that is only a short-term option for Bielsa as he looks for reinforcements.

The major issue over a possible deal for Tomori would be Chelsea dealing with Leeds. Or more pointedly Lampard dealing with Bielsa.

The duo have not seen eye to eye since ‘Spygate’ and it remains to be seen if the Blues boss will allow one of his players to move to Elland Road.

READ MORE: Bielsa insists Leeds struggles are not unique; confirms Bamford return