Reports in England claim Chelsea boss Frank Lampard has given his nod to the sale of Danny Drinkwater and Tiemoue Bakayoko after his assessment of their pre-season tour to Japan.

Lampard, who can’t sign players because of a transfer ban, wanted to look at his existing squad in the Far East before deciding on their futures but now regards the £75million pair as surplus to requirements, according to the Mail Sports Online.

Drinkwater, a former Premier League champion with Leicester City, has played only 23 times for Chelsea following his £35million move in 2017. His last appearance came against Manchester City in the Community Shield last August.

Bakayoko, 24, joined from Monaco the same summer as Drinkwater but was loaned out to AC Milan last season after struggling in the Premier League.

With Lampard restricted to 17 overseas players in Chelsea’s Premier League squad, he has decided that Bakayoko can be sacrificed with Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic, Ross Barkley and N’Golo Kante better options in midfield.

Everton could move for the £40million Frenchman as a replacement for Idrissa Gueye.