Chelsea block Giroud exit after not finding replacement despite late push from Inter, Lazio & Tottenham

The Blues had been prepared to offload their third-choice striker before the transfer window closes, but couldn't secure cover

have blocked Olivier Giroud's departure from the club despite interest from , and on the final day of the transfer window.

The striker has trained with Frank Lampard's squad on Friday as normal ahead of their Premier League clash against this weekend.

Antonio Conte's Inter had already agreed a financial package to secure Giroud after offering him a two-and-a-half-year deal with an initial salary of €4 million that would drop to €3.5m for the following two seasons.

The issue had been over the price being negotiated between Chelsea and the Italian giants, and Inter made a last-minute push for a deal in potentially a deliberate ploy to drive the price down.

However, despite Giroud having just five months left on his current deal, the Blues have decided not to let him go after failing in their search to provide Lampard with a new forward.

Giroud had been hopeful something could happen, but Chelsea's decision has also left Tottenham and Lazio disappointed. Lazio sporting director Igli Tare, meanwhile, went as far as travelling to London to see if he could unlock the deal.

France manager Didier Deschamps will also be unhappy with the outcome as his key forward could now continue to spend his final months at Chelsea on the bench. The European Championship is coming up in the summer but Giroud has played just seven times this season.

confirmed they had an offer turned down for the former Arsenal striker and Steve Bruce confirmed that "we enquired and it was not possible" ahead of his side's clash with .

Chelsea have been thwarted in their attempts to sign Napoli star Dries Mertens at every turn after first opening talks a few days ago.

Mertens was reluctant to leave while chasing the all-time goalscoring record at the Stadio San Paolo and are keen to hold onto the Belgian despite him having just five months left on his current deal.

Before trying to sign Mertens, the Blues also attempted to bring in striker Edinson Cavani but he now looks set to stay with the champions.

Frank Lampard faced further disappointment on Thursday night as news filtered through that Tariq Lamptey opted to leave Chelsea for Brighton, with only five months left on his contract.

Ethan Ampadu, meanwhile, is attracting a host of offers to hijack his loan move, with clubs including spotting an opportunity to get him away from the side.