Chelsea have been at least temporarily thwarted in their pursuit of defender David Luiz, who has been widely tipped to leave Benfica for England within the next transfer window. According to the Daily Mail, the Londoners offered £17M for the Brazilian's services, a marked step down from his expected asking price of approximately £25M:
Chelsea have been knocked back in a bid to sign Benfica defender David Luiz for £17million, it has been claimed. Portuguese newspaper Record claims Chelsea have made the first move for Luiz ... meeting resistance from Benfica.
-Source: Daily Mail.
Luiz, 23, is already rated as a top-class defender at the club and international level, and would represent a major acquisition in stabilising Chelsea's reeling defence should they succeed in their pursuit. Although the Mail's article implies that the Blues have been seriously thwarted, it's more likely that this is a simple negotiating tactic - on the transfer market, starting and moving higher is far wiser than starting high and looking desperate. The fact that Chelsea are indeed seriously pursuing Luiz is nothing but good news, despite the him not being in the fold just yet. However, if this turns into a bidding war with Manchester City involved, things could take a turn for the worse rather quickly.