Premier League: David Luiz wants to stay at Chelsea

Brazilian central defender David Luiz insists he wants to remain at Stamford Bridge and eventually work his way back into the starting eleven under new manager Maurizio Sarri. The 31-year-old defender was almost certain of leaving the Blues this summer as former manager Antonio Conte did not find a place for him in his future plans, but new boss Maurizio Sarri employed Luiz in the first eleven in both pre-season friendly matches so far. This is the second spell at Chelsea for David Luiz as he returned to Stamford Bridge from Paris Saint-Germain for 32 million pounds in 2016. "I came back to Chelsea to stay," David Luiz said. "When I took my decision to come back here from Paris it was to win the Premier League and to do something again with Chelsea, so I am very happy here. I love Sarri's philosophy. We play high, with a lot of possession in a technical way. He's trying to help us every single day to learn quickly his philosophy. A new philosophy always takes time. But it also depends on us. If we're dedicated every day and doing things every single day in training, we're trying to learn quickly." Last season manager Antonio Conte preferred to employ Andreas Christensen and Gary Cahill at the center of his defence, while David Luiz only managed to make seventeen appearances in all competitions. Now new boss Maurizio Sarri is reportedly interested in bringing Italian defender Daniele Rugani from Juventus, and that would make the competition for the two spots at the heart of the defence even tougher. But David Luiz says he's ready to face the competition: "It is good to have fantastic players, more than just 11. You have many players that can play in the starting XI, so it is a positive challenge for everybody." Chelsea are 12/1 at Bet365 to win the Premier League title next season.