• Mourinho sees Brazil defender as key man
• David Luiz to sit out Wednesday's friendly with Milan
Chelsea have instantly rejected a £35m bid from Barcelona for David Luiz. The La Liga champions lodged the offer for the 26-year-old late but José Mourinho has told them to forget about signing the Brazilian or anyone else from Stamford Bridge.
The manager sees David Luiz as a core member of the squad he intends to re0-claim the Premier League title from Manchester United and has no interest in selling his best players.
David Luiz, who arrived in west London from Benfica in January 2011 for £21m, has been earmarked as an untouchable for Mourinho along with Oscar, Juan Mata and Eden Hazard.
Furthermore, the Chelsea manager believes it will be impossible to replace a player of the Brazil defender's stature with the new season fast approaching, meaning there is no chance of the defender moving on.
David Luiz endured some shaky moments at the start of his Chelsea career but has recovered to become an integral part of a defence which will have John Terry and Gary Cahill, who have impressed on the club's tour of the United States, vying for a starting slot.
Mourinho said this week: "David has come back with us fantastically and we have to use his quality. He has big self-confidence and self-esteem, especially when he comes up from the back with the ball. Can he improve defensively? Of course. But it is my job to try always to improve players."
The defender, who has also attracted interest from Bayern Munich, will sit out Chelsea's match with Milan in New Jersey on Wednesday evening with a hamstring strain which also forced him out of Wednesday night's match which will see Mourinho lock horns with Real Madrid less than three months after leaving amid high acrimony.
Mourinho has been enthused with the prospect of building a younger, more vibrant side than the one he created during his first spell at Chelsea and is keen to add, not reduce, numbers in his squad.
Wayne Rooney remains his No1 target and Mourinho continues to watch developments at Manchester United with a keen eye.
Chelsea will finish off their US tour on Saturday with a game against Roma in Washington DC, where they have been based for the past week.
via Football: Chelsea | theguardian.com http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/aug/07/chelsea-david-luiz-barcelona
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