Willian
Chelsea had a £16.7 million bid for Willian rejected by Shakhtar Donetsk in January Reuters

Shakhtar Donetsk manager Mircea Lucescu has told Chelsea they can get playmaker Willian if they are ready to pay the right price.

The London club had a £16.7 million bid for Willian rejected by the Ukrainian outfit, according to The Sun, in January. However, Lucescu now seems to be prepared to let the Brazilian go but only if the offer is big enough.

"They have to pay the price. They have to pay the price because we bring the players here at 17 or 18 years old. We pay a lot of money because they are talented players and we bring them up. I have 23 or 24 [players like that], not only Willian," The Telegraph quoted the manager as saying.

"Luiz Adriano, Douglas Costa, Alex Teixeira, Dentinho, Alan Patrick - they are very young and they are already prepared to win the championship with a good mentality. They have played a lot of matches in Europe and they have a very, very good value," he added.

Willian moved to Shakhtar from Corinthians in 2007 for £12 million and has since enjoyed a successful career in Ukraine, winning three league titles and the 2009 Uefa Cup during his time at the Miners.

"If Chelsea pay his [asking price], I am not against letting my players play for the big clubs. If they pay the price, he can go. If not, he will remain here because he has another two-and-a-half years on his contract," Lucescu said.

Willian had been a long-term target of ex-Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas and the bid was made while he was in charge at Stamford Bridge and hence it's unsure if the Blues plan to make a fresh move for the 23 year old in the summer.

"It is not my problem. It is the problem of our club and Chelsea. But if Chelsea want to take good players that are very well educated then at Shakhtar, we have a lot of Brazilians. It is not only the performances they have done here but their education, which is very, very important. For us, every transfer is very difficult because we take a player of 18 years without a European education," the manager added.

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