Report: Chelsea to revive Niklas Sule interest in January

Antonio Conte's want of additional centre-half options at Chelsea has led the club to preparing renewed efforts to tempt Niklas Sule from Hoffenheim in January, sources told ESPN FC's Peter O'Rourke.

Chelsea is also apparently interested in Burnley's Michael Keane, Middlesbrough's Ben Gibson, and AS Roma's Antonio Rudiger, but Sule is believed to be top of Conte's wish list despite a potential tussle with Bayern Munich over his signature.

Real Madrid, RB Leipzig, and Hoffenheim are the only unbeaten teams remaining across Europe's top five leagues, and Sule, 21, continues to enhance his reputation at the latter over 11 mature outings in the Bundesliga.

His familiarity in a 3-4-3 system will serve as a bonus for Conte - the same formation he's implemented at Chelsea and has yielded seven consecutive wins - and his tender years mean he can be a long-term replacement for John Terry and Branislav Ivanovic, both of whom have their contracts expire next summer.