Cesar Azpilicueta reveals why he rejected Barcelona transfer in the summer

Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta has revealed the reason for rejecting a move to Barcelona last summer.

Azpilicueta is a Chelsea legend. Since joining in 2012, the defender has made 493 appearances for the Blues and has won multiple trophies with them. But at the end of last season, his future at Chelsea was swinging on a pendulum. Azpilicueta had his contract expire last summer but the London club had the option to extend it for another year.

Chelsea were prepared to give him a new offer, but Barcelona also came calling for the defender. So it was a tricky situation for the Spanish player to make his choice, and in the end, he decided to stay at Chelsea and signed the extension.

Two Chelsea players - Andreas Christensen and Marcos Alonso joined Barcelona in the summer, but Azpilicueta ended up staying in England.

He is currently with the Spain squad in Qatar and will be facing Morocco in Spain's round of 16 clash. And ahead of the match, he spoke about his failed Barcelona move.

"At Chelsea, I played less than 30 games and I was already a free agent," the 33-year-old said on Monday.

"It had never happened to me in my life. But the new owners arrived and they showed me the desire to stay with me. London is my home and my children speak English better than Spanish. When I made the decision I think Xavi understood it," the Chelsea player added.

The Spain international has penned a two-year deal with Chelsea and will be 35 when his latest contract expires at Chelsea. He has played 44 times for Spain and has started in two of Spain's three World Cup group-stage matches.