Luiz becomes the final piece of transfer business for Arsenal and becomes the club’s sixth summer signing.
Arsenal completed the transfer of Chelsea defender David Luiz on a two-year deal for a region of £8m.
Unai Emery and the Arsenal hierarchy were keen to add a CB in this summer transfer market as it was a key area Arsenal fans want to see addressing as well as replacing Laurent Koscielny in Arsenal’s defence.
Luiz became available as he refused to train with the rest of the Chelsea squad and showed a clear indication that he wanted to move away from the club despite signing a new contract for Chelsea at the end of 2018/19 campaign.
The Gunners took advantage and managed to reach an agreement with the West Londoners and also meant he will reunite with Arsenal head coach Unai Emery from their time at PSG together.
Emery regarded Luiz quite highly which he feels Luiz will bring "huge experience" and "adds to our defensive strength".
Luiz’s career to date
Vitória
Luiz professional career started at Vitoria where he started playing as a defensive midfielder and eventually moved to as a central defender.
He made his official debut for Vitoria in 2006 where the club were playing in the third division and eventually got promoted to the second division. Luiz played an integral part of Vitoria promotion success.
Benfica
Benfica signed Luiz in January 2007 and arrived as a replacement for Ricardo Rocha. He made his debut in a UEFA Cup match against PSG at the Parc des Princes, partnering compatriot Anderson in the centre of defence, replacing the injured Luisão. Benfica went through by winning 4-3 aggregate to progress into the later stages.
His playing time was limited due to injuries in his first few seasons. The big break for Luiz came when he flourished under new manager Jorge Jesus where he became a club symbol and vice-captain. In the 2009-10 campaign, Benfica won the league which ended their five-year wait alongside winning Taca da Liga after beating Porto 3-0 in the final. Luiz also won the Portuguese Liga Player of the Year that same season.
Luiz’s time at Benfica ended with 132 appearances and six goals, winning the league in 2010 and three Taga de Liga titles.
Luiz completed a move to Chelsea for a fee of £25million in January 2011, signing a five-and-a-half-year contract.
He instantly becoming a cult hero amongst the Chelsea fans, David Luiz received plaudits and praise for his performances.
Luiz scored his first two goals for Chelsea in league victories over both Manchester clubs and received Man of the Match awards.
He consistently delivered fantastic performances and scoring spectacular goals along the way which he helped Chelsea to win the FA Cup, Champions League and Europa League in his first spell at the club. Luiz’s first spell ended with an overall 142 appearances and 12 goals.
PSG
June 2014 saw Luiz joining French Club Paris Saint-Germain for a £50 million transfer fee, a world-record transfer for a defender, signing a five-year contract.
Scored his first PSG goal against Barcelona, a 3-2 win in the opening Champions’ League group stage fixture. In the same season, he also scored against his former side Chelsea at Stamford Bridge to knock the Blues out on away goals.
Luiz won the domestic treble of Ligue 1, Coupe de France and the Coupe de la Ligue, in addition to the Trophée des Champions earlier in the campaign. The accomplished was repeated once again in Luiz’s second season at the club. Luiz’s record at PSG: 89 appearances, 8 goals and winning seven trophies in two-and-a-half years at the club.
Chelsea (second spell)
Luiz returned to Chelsea from PSG, for a reported fee of £34 million and signed a three-year deal. He made an instant return to the side and adapted to the new formation system set by Antonito Conte which helped the Blues win the title. His only goal that season from a free kick against Liverpool at Anfield and was named in the PFA Team of the Year for the 2016–17 Premier League season.
The following campaign saw Luiz suffering from knee problems which kept him side-lined for much of the season but regained his place for the 2018/19, partnering Antonio Rudiger at centre-back under Maurizio Sarri. The final two campaigns saw Luiz and Chelsea win the FA Cup and the Europa League. Luiz’s record at Chelsea (second spell): 105 appearances and six goals.
He also played a part in Brazil’s 2013 Confederations Cup title success as he featured in all matches and biggest highlight was his outstanding goal-line clearance from Pedro's shot in the final against Spain.