David Luiz has no regrets about leaving Chelsea for Paris Saint-Germain and says that he turned down a new contract at Stamford Bridge to join Laurent Blanc’s team.
The Brazilian ended a two-and-a-half-year stay in London on 13 June when he signed for PSG for £50m, a world record fee for a defender. While his new side beat Barcelona in the Champions League last week, their start to the domestic season has been unspectacular – especially in the context of events across the English Channel, where David Luiz’s old team-mates have taken a five-point lead at the top of the Premier League table.
“I made my choice and I’m happy with my choice,” he said after a 1-1 draw with Monaco that left PSG seven points behind the Ligue 1 leaders, Marseille. “I’m happy to see my friends at Chelsea playing very well, and I’m happy to be here.
“They’ve been doing very well for many, many years. It’s important to finish well, not just the beginning.”
José Mourinho said after David Luiz’s departure that the player would not be missed in a squad that was well stocked for options at centre-back and in his secondary position as a defensive midfielder. But, rather than being ushered out of the door, David Luiz says that the club had sought to retain his services for longer.
“Chelsea offered me a new contract to stay but it was my choice to come here,” he said. “I was happy with the plan PSG offered to me and I think it was exactly the right moment to move. I was so happy at Chelsea – I won two titles, I won another title for the FA Cup, so it was great for me.
“I’m a lucky guy. I was playing for a big club in Chelsea and now I’ve got another opportunity to play for a big club.”
Aspects of David Luiz’s performance against Monaco will have been familiar to Chelsea fans. Twice he was dispossessed in dangerous areas when attempting a characteristic sortie upfield; against that, one tackle on a goalbound Lucas Ocampos was a masterpiece of timing and precision. He and his team-mates will require greater consistency to retain their league title, but he believes they can go one better and win the Champions League.
“Of course – this is the plan we have,” he said. “We have a great, great coach and it’s a great club. It’s so difficult to win the Champions League – you have to win game by game. You need to qualify first if you want to win.”
Ligue 1 has been criticised for lacking depth and tempo beneath its top clubs, but David Luiz believes he is playing at a standard comparable to that of the English league. “I think here the level is high as well. You can see many teams are playing very well. Of course it’s a bit different about the intensity and the style they play. Here it is more quality than physical.”
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