Branislav Ivanovic's demise at Chelsea has been quite spectacular. The Serbian defender has somehow retained his place throughout, however, remaining as the first choice right back, forcing Cesar Azpilicueta to continue at left back. The Spaniard suffers in this role, he is restricted offensively by his desire to continually cut back onto his stronger right foot and seldom reaches the byline in the same way as he may do on the opposite flank.

Antonio Conte must be growing in frustration at Chelsea's lack of transfer market movement. The Blues are yet to add to their shoddy 2015/16 defence and remain reliant on an inconsistent Gary Cahill and creaking, yet experienced, John Terry.

Azpilicueta must return to his strongest, most effective position if Chelsea are to realistically compete for meaningful honours this season. This leaves one solution, with Baba Rahman out of the picture, Chelsea must sign another left-sided defender.

According to Sky Sports, Conte could be on the verge of signing Marcos Alonso from Fiorentina, but we've identified three alternatives that would make for a better signing than Alonso.

The question is, which one would suit best?

Ricardo Rodriguez

Switzerland v England - UEFA Euro 2016 Qualifying Group E

Ricardo Rodriguez would be a smashing signing for Chelsea. The Swiss international has the pace and energy to shuttle up and down the left flank like an powered-up Duracell bunny, whilst possessing a left foot capable of creating chances and scoring thunderous shots.

Perhaps vulnerable defensively at times, Rodriguez may not be your archetypal Antonio Conte full-back, but he would give the side added gusto down the left, which Azpilicueta often fails to do.

Chelsea are in need of a change in their approach to this position and Rodriguez would unquestionably bring that. His desire to run beyond the left-winger would  see him create problems for opposition defenders, just like Danny Rose does for Tottenham.

Ryan Bertrand

Swansea City v Southampton - Barclays Premier League

They say never go back, but Chelsea don't seem to take much notice of that. Didier Drogba and Jose Mourinho both repeated their footsteps to return to Stamford Bridge and Chelsea might be considering asking Ryan Bertrand to do the very same thing.

Since letting Bertrand go to Southampton, the left back position has been a troublesome one for the Blues. The England international has, meanwhile, been one of the most reliable defenders in the league, whether playing as a wing-back or a third central defender.

Roman Abramovich may not be too keen on sanctioning a move for a player they have only recently sold on the grounds that he was not up to scratch, but this could prove to be a shrewd repurchase for a team that have too often gone for the flashier, foolish signings.

Jetro Willems

Jetro Willems

If Antonio Conte wants a safety-first left back, Willems is probably not the man for him. However, when Eden Hazard drifts centrally from the left, it is important that Chelsea have an attacking option to hold the width on that flank.

Willems has a lot to learn about the art of defending, he has shown that he has an error or two in him whilst with PSV Eindhoven, but his attacking talent is without question. After all, if Chelsea want to play it safe with a more secure full-back, they could always revert to playing Azpilicueta at left-back.