The Blues are seemingly linked with different players every day, although this time there appears to be at least some substance behind the speculation. According to Shakhtar Donetsk coach Mircea Lucescu, Chelsea have attempted to sign Willian over recent weeks although they have been unable to meet the club’s asking price.

Willian has become something of a sensation in Ukraine, having established himself as one of the best attacking midfielders in Europe. Despite featuring sparingly after he joined in a £12m transfer in 2007, he has become a firm regular for Shakhtar and has also made his debut for the Brazilian national team. Bearing the above in mind, it is no surprise that he has caught the attention from across Europe, although it appears as though it’ll take a hefty transfer fee for his current club to even consider selling.

Shakhtar coach Mircea Lucescu appears quite irritated by Chelsea’s interest and can’t seem to believe that his player could be valued less than Eden Hazard. Speaking to Dolce Sport, he said, “They paid a lot of money for Hazard but are not willing to pay for Willian, even though he’s better in my opinion. Chelsea want to buy Brazilian but made an offer for the eastern European market. They offered €34m but we don’t think that’s his current value.”

Whether or not the Blues return with a new bid is another matter. However, with various sources claiming that fellow Brazilian Oscar is all but certain to sign in the next few days, Roberto Di Matteo may decide to stop pursuing Willian. Oscar is regarded as a player of similar mould and with Roman Abramovich poised to splash out around £26m for the 20-year-old, he surely would not entertain the idea of investing a similar amount of money in another player.