Chelsea have indicated they would be willing to sign Andy Carroll on a permanent basis and have opened discussions with West Ham.

The Premier League champions are scrutinising a number of forwards in an attempt to ease the workload on Álvaro Morata and were initially interested in taking Carroll on a six-month loan. West Ham would want around £20m for a player who has 18 months on his £70,000-a-week deal.

The 29-year-old, who missed Tuesday’s FA Cup win over Shrewsbury Town with an ankle injury, has nine England caps but has scored only twice this season. He does not have the profile of player to whom Chelsea would normally turn, because of his limited resale value and injury record. Yet Antonio Conte’s team have struggled of late to convert chances and the manager believes Carroll would add a different dimension.

Chelsea have found options limited in the midwinter market. There is interest in other forwards – Red Star Belgrade’s Ghana international Richmond Boakye has also been assessed and Conte admires Christian Benteke at Crystal Palace – but there is an acceptance it may be easier to pursue short-term targets.

Carroll, even at £20m, may fall into that category and would be eligible for European competition, with Chelsea playing Barcelona in the Champions League next month. Any arrival would allow Michy Batshuayi, who has made three Premier League starts in 18 months, to join Sevilla on loan.

West Ham have made it clear they will not countenance Carroll’s departure on a temporary basis but are open to selling a player who joined for £15m from Liverpool in 2013 after a season on loan at Upton Park. Javier Hernández and Diafra Sakho are also effectively up for sale.

Chelsea signed Ross Barkley from Everton this month and had hoped to follow that up with a move for Alex Sandro at Juventus. However, talks have failed to yield a compromise on the fee for the left wing-back, prompting Chelsea to widen their search. There is interest in Alex Telles at Porto and Roma’s Emerson Palmieri.