The Catalans are ready to rekindle their interest in Luiz.
Barcelona have put aside £29m for head coach Gerardo Martino as the Argentine is targeting a swoop for Chelsea defender David Luiz, reports Spanish daily Marca.
The Catalans have been interested in the Brazil international for some time and tried to bring the centre-back to the Nou Camp in the summer, but their £21m offer was rejected.
When Jose Mourinho returned to Stamford Bridge as manager it was clear that the 50-year-old didn’t rate Luiz in the back four and Gary Cahill and John Terry have been generally preferred.
However, in recent times Mourinho has been playing the South American in defensive midfield and the 26-year-old has impressed.
This has been particularly important as both Michael Essien and John Obi Mikel have looked poor in the middle of the park, whilst Frank Lampard is approaching the end of the Englishman’s career.
Yet Martino wants to strengthen the Barca team and with captain Carles Puyol also considering retirement after a spate of injuries, the back line is the priority.
As a defender who is comfortable on the ball and has great technique and passing capabilities, Luiz would be ideally suited to the ‘tiki-taka’ style employed in Catalonia.
The Brazilian has been in west London since January 2011 after making the £25m switch from Benfica and has since played 120 matches for the club in all competitions – winning the Champions League, FA Cup and Europa League in that time.
After shelling out so much for Luiz, Chelsea are not going to let the player leave for a modest fee and will want to at least make their money back.
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