Chelsea reject £17.6m offer from Arsenal for David Luiz

Chelsea have reportedly rejected a £17.6m offer for David Luiz from fellow London club Arsenal.

In his two stints with Chelsea, David Luiz has made close to 200 appearances for the club. However, his last season with Chelsea was a disappointing one.

He started the season as a first-team starter, but his poor performance in the Champions League clash against Roma, which Chelsea lost 3-0, put him on the bench. David Luiz only made 17 appearances throughout the season for Chelsea.

The Brazilian centre-back also struggled with injuries during December.

David Luiz has been linked with a move away from Chelsea for long in this transfer window. Many outlets have claimed that David Luiz could be on his way to Italy. However, he has now surprisingly emerged as a surprise target for North London club Arsenal.

According to Le10 Sport, Arsenal made a £17.6m bid for David Luiz, which was rejected by Chelsea. Arsenal are reportedly considering if they should make an improved bid for the defender.

Arsenal had a disappointing season with their defence, which saw them finish 6^th in the Premier League.

Per Mertesacker has retired, and Laurent Koscielny is sidelined with injury for some time, which he suffered during their game against Atletico Madrid. The remaining defenders, Kostantinos Mavropanos, Mustafi and Chambers are still unproven in the context of regular first team football.

Le10 has also reported that David Luiz could still have a future at Chelsea. However, it depends on whether Antonio Conte will be the manager of Chelsea for the next season.