After months of speculation Barcelona have made an official bid for Chelsea defender David Luiz, according to Sky Sports.
The bid is undisclosed but is thought to be worth somewhere in the region of $26-$34 million (£17-£22m), which is considerably less than the $53 million (£34.5m) bid the Catalan giants were rumored to be preparing.
Amount of the bid aside, Barcelona have signaled their intent to get a deal done for the defender as representatives flew into London on Tuesday for negotiations.
There is little to suggest that the subject bid will interest Chelsea. Earlier in the summer Manchester United and Bayern Munich made their interest in the Brazilian known, with the later being told by the Blues that only an offer in the $80 million (£52m) would entertain.
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has further dulled the prospects of selling Luiz by publicly and privately saying that the club will not be selling the Brazilian. Mourinho issued flattery towards Luiz after his side’s 2-0 pre-season win over AC Milan: “David has come back with us fantastically and we have to use his quality. He has big self-confidence and self-esteem, especially when he comes up from the back with the ball.”
Any sale of Luiz at this point would also come as a shock given how well the player has adapted to Premier League football. Arriving at the club in January 2011 from Benfica, Luiz was an athletic but unpolished talent that frequently found himself out of position and prone to mistake. Last season, however, the center-back adjusted tremendously, making himself a regular in the starting lineup and a major threat going forward.
His defensive positioning still comes into question but the mistakes are fewer and far between. Further, Luiz has proven himself to be a valuable member in the locker room with his laid-back, jovial approach. The fan favorite also has many – including John Terry – believing that Luiz could be the future captain of the club.
All of this comes at odds with Barcelona’s approach. The Blaugrana appear to have accepted that a defense comprised of an aging and increasingly fragile Carles Puyol, a slowing Gerard Pique and full-backs who take more pride in going forward than defending is not a Champions League winning combination. Earlier this summer Barca failed in their attempt to scoop up Marquinhos from Roma and as of now, the move for Luiz looks like it’s heading in the same direction.
