Bringing back former players seems to be the rage in this transfer window. After Paul Pogba made a world record return to Manchester United, it looks like Chelsea have caught the ex-player bug, with the Premier League club reportedly making an offer to re-sign David Luiz from PSG.
Luiz left Chelsea for PSG in 2014, making a record £50 million move to Paris. That deal was thought to be a brilliant one by Chelsea, considering the Brazilian's penchant for mistakes.
Indeed, Luiz showed, at 29, he is still prone to plenty of them, giving away a daft penalty in PSG's loss to Monaco at the weekend. That led to Unai Emery, the new manager at Paris Saint-Germain, substituting the former Benfica centre-back, leading to suggestions over his future.
Chelsea have been in the transfer market all summer for a central defender, but have failed to find one. Antonio Conte has seen bids, and considerable ones at that, for Kalidou Koulibaly and Alessio Romagnoli rejected by Napoli and AC Milan respectively, leaving the club in desperation-mode as the final day of the transfer window looms.
Deadline day always throws up a few strange deals, and Luiz to Chelsea could be one of them. According to the Daily Mail, the Blues saw a loan approach for Marquinhos rebuffed by PSG, which in turn opened up the possibility of making a move for David Luiz.
The report claims Chelsea have made a £32 million offer for the Brazil international, with the player open to a return back to the London club. ESPN FC puts that offer at £35m, and with the crazy money that is being spent for players in this transfer window, it would be far from a surprise if the move ends up going through before the deadline – the transfer window shuts on Wednesday at 11 p.m. BST (3.30 a.m. IST next day).
While the Luiz transfer has still some legs yet before it fizzles out or ends up being true, Chelsea do look like bringing in a defender in soon, even if it isn't the centre-back that Conte wants. Marcos Alonso, the left-back, is closing in on a transfer from Fiorentina, with the Spaniard reportedly in London at the moment.
Chelsea have agreed a £23m fee with Fiorentina for the 25-year-old defender, according to The Guardian, with Conte bringing in cover at left-back after letting Baba Rahman leave for Schalke on loan. Alonso's arrival will also allow Conte to move Cesar Azpilicueta to right-back, while Branislav Ivanovic could then move back to the centre of defence, be that in a five-man formation or a normal flat back four.
The Blues, though, will feel happy and content only after they sign a centre-back, and if that defender is to be David Luiz or not remains to be seen.
