Chelsea are interested in instigating yet another hijack in the January transfer market, and this time could swipe Matheus Nunes from under Liverpool's noses...

What's the word?

Wolverhampton Wanderers completed the signing of Nunes from Sporting Lisbon for £42.2m last summer, but the Old Gold will face a strenuous task in maintaining one of their star midfielders following the interest from some of the Premier League's most prominent teams.

Jurgen Klopp's Reds have initially been the club with the most intense interest in a potential £50m deal, but a recent report from The Telegraph has pushed the Blues into contention.

While the west London outfit have indeed issued sweeping changes on the transfer front since Todd Boehly's arrival last year, the central midfield is still an area subject to reinforcement, especially given the expiring contracts of N'Golo Kante and Jorginho in the summer.

Ditch Enzo plans?

Nunes has chalked up 22 appearances for Wolves since leaving his homeland, but he is yet to score and has provided just one assist from his deployment at the heart of his side, but the abundant quality awaiting full harness is evidence enough that he could yet be crafted into a leading force on the European scene.

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola once heralded the 24-year-old as "one of the best midfielders in the world", such is the natural talent at the ace's disposal.

And while he hasn't quite hit sixth gear in Wolves colours, it is worth noting that he has arrived at an outfit barren of fluidity and devoid of life across the early stages of the campaign, now offering mounting positivity following the arrival of Julen Lopetegui in November.

As per Sofascore, the "special" gem, as lauded by former coach Ruben Franco, has averaged 1.2 shots, 0.9 key passes and 1.7 tackles per game in the Premier League, also completing 83% of his passes, and the tools to clinch more prosperous fortunes are certainly there for the Portuguese maestro.

If Chelsea do indeed choose to forge ahead with plans for the 11-cap phenom, he could prove to be the perfect alternative to the high-profile Enzo Fernandez, whom the Blues are struggling to prise away from Benfica following his triumphant World Cup tournament with Argentina, where he also won the Best Young Player.

With a €120m (£105m) release clause, the South American sensation is his side's most coveted asset by a long stretch, and Chelsea have found their pursuit positively fruitless thus far, following a bid earlier this month that the Portuguese club rejected.

And with Nunes available for half of this fee, Potter must push for the current Premier League player, with resources then amiable to inject into another area of the field; while Chelsea's opulence stretches high and wide, after parting with over £400m in less than a year, being somewhat more circumspect in this particular instance could prove worthwhile in the long run.

As such, Boehly would be prudent to ensure that Nunes does not fall into rival clutches; while landing Fernandez might appear to be the more arresting option, Nunes - who would indeed come for a portion of the price of his Argentinian counterpart - could be the key to unlock success in an expansive pool of talent at Stamford Bridge.