Chelsea may turn their attention to a Bundesliga defender if they cannot land Wesley Fofana.
The Leicester City man is their prime target before the transfer windows closes at the end of the month.
However, Sky Sports states that Edmond Tapsoba from Bayer Leverkusen is another option.
Chelsea had a third bid of £70 million declined by Leicester, who want a record fee for a defender.
The source adds that Tapsoba, who has been with Leverkusen since 2019, would certainly cost a lot less.
The 23-year-old does have four years remaining on his deal, which means Leverkusen will not be eager to sell.