Chelsea have hired former Celtic head of scouting Mark Lawwell as a scout ahead of the January transfer window. The 42-year-old will now take up a similar position with the Blues.

Lawwell spent almost a decade at Manchester City as their head of international relations and scouting. His work at City also involved their sister club, Yokohama F Marinos.

The Scotsman worked closely with Ange Postecoglou in Japan before joining him at Celtic in July 2022. Having left that role more than two years ago, Lawwell has finally returned to professional football with a job at Stamford Bridge.

According to The Sun, the Blues’ new senior scout “has already started work” and will be responsible for “identifying stars” for Xabi Alonso’s side. Chelsea are no strangers to signing top players, so Lawwell will have his work cut out to meet fans’ expectations.

The Scotsman signed several quality players for the Hoops, such as Alistair Johnston and Aaron Mooy, but he also took some risks that did not pay off. With the January window around the corner, Chelsea fans will hope Lawwell settles in quickly and gets down to business.

What should Mark Lawwell target first for Chelsea?

Chelsea lack quality and depth in two key positions: central midfield and centre-back. The Blues have already identified Alex Scott as their top midfield target for the January window.

Scott is wanted by several Premier League clubs, but Chelsea are reportedly at the front of the queue. The Bournemouth star is expected to cost around £90 million and would fit right in alongside Moises Caicedo.

Mark Lawwell’s first major scouting mission should be to find a central defender. Maxence Lacroix will be out for around two months with a hamstring injury, while Wesley Fofana has already shown that he cannot be relied upon.

Xabi Alonso’s side would benefit greatly from signing an experienced, dominant centre-back to play alongside Levi Colwill and Josh Acheampong. Most fans would agree that Chelsea will struggle to challenge for the Premier League until they sign that player profile.