Charly Musonda: Why I turned down Barcelona for Chelsea

Rejection: Musonda says he stayed at Chelsea for his family
Matthew Lewis/Getty Images
Vaishali Bhardwaj19 March 2016

Highly-rated Chelsea youngster Charly Musonda has revealed he rejected a transfer to Barcelona four years ago to join the Blues after the Premier League side agreed to sign his brothers.

Musonda left Anderlecht's academy to join Chelsea in 2012 and arrived in England with older siblings Tika and Lamisha, who also signed for the Blues during the same summer.

Musonda - who is yet to make a senior appearance for Chelsea - admits he was wanted by Spanish giants Barcelona but decided to say no to a move to the Camp Nou for the sake of his family.

"It is true that I rejected Barcelona because Chelsea also agreed to sign my brothers," Musonda told Marca.

"At the time, it was very important for the family that we all joined the same club. We wanted to stick together.

"Barcelona are among the best in the world, but it was important for me to have my family with me.

"Visiting La Masia was very impressive. It was a great experience that motivated me to keep working very hard. I was introduced to Pep Guardiola. It was a great visit."

Musonda is currently spending the second half of the campaign on loan at Spanish club Real Betis after emerging as a target for a host of Premier League clubs.

The 19-year-old, who is contracted to Chelsea until 2019, has impressed in La Liga since sealing his loan move in January.

Musonda recently said that he believes it would be more beneficial for him to stay in Spain and play regularly than return to Chelsea this summer and turn out for the reserve side.

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