Why Chelsea dropped interest in £43m midfielder after January enquiry

Chelsea decided to abandon their interest in Douglas Luiz after holding exploratory talks to sign the midfielder on a six-month loan deal this winter.

Rennes defender Jeremy Jacquet was identified as Chelsea’s primary target for the January transfer window and discussions to bring the 20-year-old to Stamford Bridge had appeared to be headed in the right direction.

The Blues even went as far as agreeing personal terms with Jacquet, only for the young centre-back to sign for Liverpool instead in a transfer deal worth £55million plus £5m in add-ons.

It means Liam Rosenior will finish the campaign with the same first-team squad he inherited from Enzo Maresca, minus the likes of Axel Disasi, Tyrique George and Kendry Paez, who sealed loan moves away from west London.

Raheem Sterling, meanwhile, left by mutual consent before the deadline, bringing an end to the forward’s desperately underwhelming three-and-a-half year association with the Club World Cup holders.

According to The Athletic, Chelsea had explored the possibility of strengthening their options in central midfield in January, with Dario Essugo and Romeo Lavia both unavailable through injury.

A serious thigh problem means Essugo is still yet to make a single appearance for Chelsea this season following his arrival from Sporting. A similar issue has kept Lavia sidelined since early November.

The report claims the absence of both Essugo and Lavia is what led Chelsea to make an enquiry for Luiz, who spent the first half of the campaign on loan at Nottingham Forest from Juventus.

But the Blues’ interest was short-lived – and their pursuit was soon dropped – due to the recent form of Andrey Santos and the fact Lavia is rapidly closing in on his return.

Luiz went on to rejoin Aston Villa on loan for the remainder of the season, making his second debut in the side’s 1-0 defeat to Brentford at the weekend.

It’s understood Villa have the option to sign the 27-year-old Brazil international outright from Juventus for a fee of €25million (£21.5m) in the summer.

Facing the media ahead of Chelsea’s Carabao Cup exit at the hands of Arsenal, Rosenior confirmed that Lavia was making significant strides with his recovery.

The injury-prone midfielder has been out of action since early November but was pictured back in full training at Cobham for the first time last week.

‘Romeo is in a really, really good place,’ Rosenior told reporters when asked for an update on Lavia.

‘I just have to make sure this last stage of his rehab is really good.’

On Essugo’s condition, the Chelsea boss added: ‘Dario is obviously a little bit further behind.’

Should Lavia prove his fitness in time, Rosenior may be temped to ease the Belgian back in with some minutes against Wolves this weekend.

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