Chelsea allegedly hold an interest in signing Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder Yasin Ayari.

Having missed out on adding Monaco's Lamine Camara to their engine room ranks during the closing hours of the summer transfer window, the Blues are expected to be active in the winter market.

That is despite Moises Caicedo and Jordan Henderson quickly striking up an encouraging relationship in midfield since the international break.

However, when taking into consideration the recent long-term injury to Reece James and Valentin Barco yet to prove himself in the Premier League, Chelsea will be open-minded to making additions.

According to TEAMtalk, the West Londoners have decided to join the race to sign Ayari in 2027.

Why could Chelsea sign Brighton star Ayari?

Brighton are under pressure to negotiate fresh terms with the Sweden international after his rise to prominence at the Amex Stadium.

The 23-year-old has contributed two goals from six Premier League starts, helping Brighton sit in third place in the Premier League table.

Nevertheless, Ayari's current deal is due to expire at the end of the season, albeit with Brighton holding a 12-month option to extend his contract.

While the assumption is that the clause will be activated in due course, Brighton will naturally want to strengthen their position with regards to Ayari's long-term future.

At this point in time, Brighton and Ayari are allegedly not close to reaching an agreement over a contract extension.

Galatasaray are also being credited as admirers of the player, who has eight goals and four assists from 85 appearances for the Seagulls.

Why Chelsea should not sign Ayari

Although Ayari has emerged as a star man under Fabian Hurzeler at Brighton, that does not mean that he would necessarily fit in at Chelsea.

The biggest issue is his height. Ayari is just 5ft 8ins, and Chelsea have gone a number of seasons where they have lacked physicality in the centre of the pitch.

Whether it is with Henderson by his side or not, Caicedo functions better in midfield when he has a more physically-imposing player alongside him, and Ayari is not that player.