Chelsea have been told that they will need to spend at least £50m to sign Anthony Gordon from Everton, according to reports.
The Blues had a £40m offer for the forward rejected by the Toffees over the weekend.
Just minutes after their 2-2 draw with Tottenham, Chelsea learned that their opening bid was deemed insufficient by Everton.
Thomas Tuchel is keen to further bolster his attacking ranks before the transfer market closes for business on September 1.
Chelsea have already acquired Raheem Sterling from Manchester City this summer, but the departures of Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner have left them short of options at the top of the pitch.
The west London outfit are also tracking Barcelona forward Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who could be sold just seven months after moving to the Camp Nou.
Gordon is being targeted in addition to the Gabon international, not as an alternative.
But Chelsea may have to make the Everton man their most expensive ever English signing, ahead of Sterling at £47.5m.
According to CBS Sports, Everton value Gordon at £50m and will not entertain any offers below that amount.
They have already made their position clear to Tottenham and Newcastle, who have also been keeping tabs on the 21-year-old this summer.
If Everton do agree to sell Gordon, they may try to persuade Chelsea to include Armando Broja in the deal.
However, the Blues are reluctant to let the former Southampton loanee leave the club on a permanent basis.
They are open to sanctioning his departure on a temporary basis, but that might not be enough to satisfy Everton.
Chelsea would be open to including Michy Batshuayi as part of the package, with Frank Lampard keen to add another striker to his squad in the next few weeks.
Next up for Tuchel's side is a trip to Elland Road to face rivals Leeds on Sunday afternoon.
