According to a report in Metro, Barcelona are not giving up the chase to sign Chelsea defender David Luiz, after their initial attempts to lure the Brazilian star out of Stamford Bridge failed due to the excessive salary demands from the player that were not acceptable to the coach.

Chelsea will resume their hunt for a long awaited Barclays Premier League crown this Saturday when they face a challenge of traveling to Merseyside and facing an Everton side that have been revamped in terms of managerial presence and playing staff. The decade under David Moyes has come to an end, and a new era is set under Roberto Martinez, who showed his calibre of managing under financial constraints at Wigan Athletic. Everton have been facing difficulty signing top players without selling one of their own, and Moyes was working under a tight budget, to secure the signings of potential talents rather than proven talents. The deadline day sale of Marouane Fellaini to Manchester United in a deal in the region of £27.5 million would have raised eyebrows over their ambitions to reach the top, the signings of Arouna Kone, James McCarthy, and the loan signings of Gerard Deulofeu, Gareth Barry and Romelu Lukaku will surely give Jose Mourinho reason to be concerned about Saturday’s visit to Goodison Park.

One player who has not found a place in the starting lineup under Mourinho is Luiz, who has had to see Gary Cahill and John Terry partner at the back, with Branislav Ivanovic and Ashley Cole in the wing back positions, leaving no place for the Brazilian. There was immense speculation over Luiz’s future in the summer, and there were reports of an official bid being submitted by Barcelona, but Mourinho was quick to declare that the player was not on sale under any circumstances.

Luiz possesses aggression which has earned him plaudits in the Premier League, and his free-kick taking ability backed by his aerial dominance makes him an asset for Chelsea, and one that the club would not want to lose to a rival like Barcelona.

Barcelona president Sandro Rosell said, “Barcelona should not pay more than what the coach thinks is the right price for the salary,

“We did not recruit David Luiz because of a technical decision. But we will see what happens in January.”