Bayern Munich winger Douglas Costa claims Chelsea made an offer to sign him during the summer transfer window, but he decided against the move as he wanted to play under Pep Guardiola. Costa, 25, joined the Bavarian giants for a reported fee of £21.5m ($32.5m) and instantly became an integral part of Guardiola's attack.
Chelsea have also been long-term admirers, according to Costa, who told FourFourTwo in January he was desperate to seal a "dream" move to Stamford Bridge and work alongside Jose Mourinho.
The club instead opted to sign Juan Cuadrado during last season's January window and Costa now claims when the Premier League side came calling in the summer, he was only interested in a move to the German champions.
"Chelsea also wanted me," Costa told Bild, as reported by ESPN. "There was great interest and they made great efforts, but I wanted to join Pep Guardiola by all means. And Bayern. It was a conscious decision in favour of Pep and Bayern because I was convinced that I can learn more here."
Mourinho said during the January window that he welcomed Costa's interest in moving to Chelsea.
"I am always happy when a player tells us that he would like to play for my club," Mourinho said. "I am always happy so the reaction for Douglas Costa is the reaction of being happy with his comments and every Douglas Costa in the world that would like to play for Chelsea these kind of feelings are always welcome."
While Chelsea have struggled to create this season, Costa has emerged as one of Europe's best wingers during his sensational start at Bayern. While Thomas Muller and Robert Lewandowski have provided much of the firepower, the Brazil international has also played a crucial role in another dominant campaign, scoring six and providing a further nine for his teammates.
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