How much?! Shakhtar reject Chelsea approach for winger

Chelsea have been linked with just about every player on the planet over recent months and have already singed Marko Marin, Eden Hazard and Oscar (although there’s no official confirmation on the last one yet), and we’ve seen the odd rehashed transfer rumour too, with the latest being a fresh approach for Shakhtar’s Willian.

Recent reports have suggested that the Ukrainian club have rejected a whopping €34 million from the Blues for the services of the Brazilian winger, although I sense more than a hint of bullshit when it comes  to this particular story. He’s not worth that and I wouldn’t want to see us spending this much on a winger when we could get a much better one in Lucas Moura, albeit at a slightly higher price and amongst more competition for his signature.

However, Mircea Lucescu, Shakhtar’s manager, believes that Willian is worth much more than what Chelsea have allegedly offered:

“I had a conversation with Willian and the club president about Chelsea’s interest.

“I told Willian he can leave, but only if the right offer is made. He’s a great player.

“Willian was the biggest investment Shakhtar have made in a young player, and we have to respect that. Clubs should not assume that if a player is coming from the east that the the price is lower.

“They paid a lot of money for Hazard but are not willing to pay that for Willian, even though he’s better in my opinion.”

(Daily Mail)

Ultimately, the price is set by them and they will naturally want to maximise his value if he was to leave the club, but he’s never going to fetch more of a price and I wouldn’t class him alongside the likes of Hazard, whose potential is far greater than Willian’s and he’s come from a growing league that is a hotbed of footballing talent.

I’ve only really seen Willian play in European competition, so it’s hard to judge the player and I doubt many of you frequently watch Ukrainian football to reach a conclusion you’re 100% confident in either. But to me it seems as though he’s a step down from what we already have in Florent Malouda, although he’s younger but that isn’t a good enough reason to spend the sort of figures being mentioned for him.

Will Chelsea add too their Brazilian contingent by signing Willian, or are the press telling fibs again?

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2174990/Chelsea-bid-Willian-rejected.html