Chelsea to 'Consider' Selling Willian as Barcelona Make Improved Third Offer for Winger
Chelsea will reportedly 'consider' selling Willian this summer after an improved third bid from Barcelona, using the money raised to reinvest in the squad for new manager Maurizio Sarri in what remains of the summer transfer window.
Willian has been heavily linked with Manchester United, where he would reunite with ex-Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, but it is Barcelona who seem to be making the most effort to sign him.
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Marca notes that the Catalans first showed interest as far back as 2009, and, according to the Daily Mail, the reigning Spanish champions have now submitted a £65m (€73m) offer for the Brazilian, a bigger fee than their previous second bid of £54m (€61m).
It is said that Chelsea director Marina Granovskaia will meet with owner Roman Abramovich this week in order to 'assess potential outgoings and signings'.
Willian would be part of those discussions, while Chelsea also remain linked with Juventus trio Daniel Rugani, Gonzalo Higuain and Mattia Caldara, CSKA Moscow midfielder Aleksandr Golovin, and a selection of goalkeepers including Petr Cech, Jack Butland and Joe Hart.
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Italy midfielder Jorginho is so far the only capture of the summer after the protracted managerial saga that saw new boss Sarri only replace outgoing manager Antonio Conte on 14th July, almost two whole months after the 2017/18 came to a close with the FA Cup final.
With N'Golo Kante set to stay and Chelsea unwilling to let Eden Hazard join Real Madrid without a fight, the possibility of Willian's potential departure triggering a wave of new arrivals before the transfer deadline early next month is reason for renewed optimism in west London.
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Barcelona, meanwhile, would be happy to strengthen an attacking unit that already features Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Philippe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele.
