Chelsea are preparing to hand Frank Lampard a summer war chest in excess of £150million to offset his disappointment at the club’s failure to sign any players in January.

The Blues head coach was visibly frustrated on deadline day as they were unable to bolster their attacking options, despite Lampard making it clear they needed a striker to ease the burden on Tammy Abraham.

Chelsea explored deals for a number of short-term options, including Paris Saint-Germain’s Edinson Cavani and Dries Mertens, of Napoli, before deciding to wait for their top targets to become available.

Standard Sport understands Lyon forward Moussa Dembele is currently their preferred centre-forward signing. The Ligue 1 side were unwilling to do business last month, but Dembele is expected to become available this summer.

It is unclear at this early stage what price Lyon would demand for the 23-year-old, but he is likely to command a fee in excess of £60m.

Another shortlisted player, Timo Werner, admitted on Monday he would be interested in a move to England.

“I am open for everything,” said the 23-year-old RB Leipzig striker. “I was in America for a holiday recently and English football was on all the time. That’s an exclamation mark for the Premier League. But there are also big, famous clubs and it would certainly be fun playing there.”

Werner has scored 25 goals in 28 appearances this season and has also attracted interest from Manchester United and Liverpool.

Chelsea will also be in the market for a winger, as Pedro is expected to depart on a free transfer when his contract expires in June. Willian is in the same situation and although the Blues are hopeful of agreeing an extension, talks reached an impasse some time ago over the length of any new contract, with the 31-year-old Brazilian seeking a minimum two-year deal and a significant increase on his £110,000-a-week wage.

The Blues hold a serious interest in Jadon Sancho, whose return to England is anticipated this summer as he continues his fine form for Borussia Dortmund. The 19-year-old is valued in excess of £100m and a prominent showing for England at Euro 2020 could see his asking price soar.

Chelsea are not put off by that valuation, although they will face competition from Manchester City and United for his signature. Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha and Ajax’s Hakim Ziyech are among several other wide options being looked at.

Lampard is believed to have been given assurances he will be backed in the summer after expecting additions to the squad last month, a development which would have enabled Olivier Giroud to depart.

The 41-year-old’s irritation at missing out led him to declare Chelsea “underdogs” for a top-four finish prior to travelling to Leicester at the beginning of a weekend which ended with their lead over fifth plac

e cut to four points as a result of Tottenham’s 2-0 win over City. Giroud was left out because “a lot of scrutiny has been on him” and Lampard faces a difficult task reintegrating the Frenchman, who is desperate for game time ahead of Euro 2020.

Chelsea were only able to enter the market last month after having their Fifa transfer ban reduced to one window.

Lampard was keen on making additions because of the strains placed on a young squad only bolstered by the summer arrival of Christian Pulisic from Dortmund and Mateo Kovacic’s loan move from Real Madrid being made permanent.