Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has declared that central defender David Luiz would not be leaving the club at any cost, ruling out the possibility of a move after concrete interest shown by Barcelona in the player over the past few weeks.

Mourinho’s side begin their quest for the Barclays Premier League campaign this weekend, and are fully prepared for the task following a successful pre-season run of form. The tour of Asia and United States was successful with the squad losing just one match to Real Madrid in the International Champions Cup. Elsewhere, everything seems positive for Mourinho, who has been shuffling his players in this campaign to see which combination works best. It is clear that Mourinho is not ready to offload Fernando Torres, and wants to adjust the team’s setup around the former Atletico Madrid star. The three new senior signings, Mark Schwarzer, Marco van Ginkel and Andre Schurrle have settled in the squad comfortably, and appeared in pre-season.  The Blues play newly promoted side Hull City, which is led by Steve Bruce, at Stamford Bridge, and Mourinho will be hoping to snap up all three points.

Luiz’s transfer saga began when the Brazilian was linked with interest from German giants Bayern Munich, where Pep Guardiola was reportedly a fan of the player’s aggression and competitiveness. However, Guardiola sealed the signing of Thiago Alcantara last month, and the attacker seems like the final signing of the season for the German champions. Then came in Barcelona, who showed concrete interest in the former Benfica defender’s services. However, Mourinho will use his full squad depth throughout the season to ensure fitness of the players, which means Luiz will play an important role in the side. Chelsea have already rejected a bid from the Catalan giants for Luiz, and are said to be in no hurry to enter discussions with any club.

According to The Evening Standard, Mourinho reiterated Chelsea’s stance on the transfer situation regarding Luiz, reaffirming the club’s liking of the player and their reluctance to sell under any circumstance.

Mourinho said, “No chance he is going to leave. He is a player we want to keep.”

“He is a player with four years (on his) contract, he just signed a contract last year.”

“We like him. He is an important player for the club and the club is not ready to sell him for any price.”