Thirty and out
Hero Luiz may be forced to leave Stamford Bridge
FOOTBALL NEWS CORRESPONDENT
David Luiz’s future remains in doubt, with Chelsea reluctant to change their policy of offering players aged over 30 only one-year contract extensions.
Chelsea are hopeful Antonio Rudiger will follow N’golo Kante, Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta in signing a new contract, but the German’s central defensive partner Luiz is entering the final six months of his deal.
Luiz, who scored and starred in Chelsea’s 2-0 victory over Manchester City on Saturday, has reaffirmed that he wants to stay at Stamford Bridge. But the 31-yearold wants more than the one-year extension that has been offered and knows he could get a longer deal elsewhere.
It is expected Luiz will start receiving offers from foreign clubs in January, when he can begin negotiating a summer move. As things stand, unless Chelsea review their policy, it is believed he could leave the club at the end of the season.
“I am just trying to enjoy myself, like I do every single day,” said Luiz. “Then, for sure, we will do the best thing for me, for Chelsea, for everybody.”
Asked whether he would accept a one-year extension, Luiz said: “We are still talking, let’s see. Let’s see what the future brings.”
When it was put to Luiz that ideally he would stay at Chelsea, the former Paris St-germain defender added: “I love this club, everybody knows I want to stay.”
Luiz, along with Chelsea’s other goalscorer Kante and captain Azpilicueta, was excellent against City after being rested for the midweek defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers. City’s defeat was their first of the Premier League season and Luiz hopes that Chelsea may have inflicted a wound on Pep Guardiola’s team, whom he described as “the best in the world”.
“I hope, I hope, I hope so,” said Luiz. “But I also know they are a fantastic team and they accept to lose sometimes too, because they have experience of that. But I hope we hurt them and we can move up the table and be closer to them.
“At the moment they are the best team in the world, more than three years together. It is never easy to play against them, but I think we had the right humility and right plan to win the game.
“When you play this type of game, it is a time to give everything and understand how far you can go. So this was an amazing game and we beat the best team in the world.”
Maurizio Sarri has been confused by the mentality of his team and Luiz admitted the quality of City’s attackers helped to concentrate minds in the Chelsea defence.
“It’s true,” he said. “The way they play, they are able to keep the ball, even the goalkeeper is amazing. You have to be honest and have the humility to say, ‘OK we have to defend, we have to suffer because we play against a fantastic team’.”