Leverkusen's Calhanoglu refutes quote stating his wish to join Chelsea

Bayer Leverkusen’s suspended set-piece maestro Hakan Calhanoglu claims the quotes attributed to him stating a wish to join Chelsea are false.

According to an interview with Turkish newspaper Fanatik picked up by ESPN FC, Calhanoglu said “God willing, I will be a Chelsea player next season,” while adding he expected a host of other clubs to be interested in him after serving his four-month ban.

Related: Leverkusen’s Calhanoglu banned 4 months for breach of contract in 2011

The 22-year-old Turkey international has now denied he voiced these wishes on Twitter:

The Chelsea interest was speculated by Fanatik, which claimed the Premier League leader had identified Calhanoglu as an eventual replacement for Oscar. The Brazilian midfielder left for China’s Shanghai SIPG in January for a whopping £60 million.

Calhanoglu’s controversial FIFA suspension came about due to backtracking on an agreed contract with Trabzonspor to sign fresh terms with then-employer Karlsruhe SC. Now, several years down the line and with the ex-Hamburg man putting in some enterprising performances predominantly on the left for Leverkusen, the dispute has come back to haunt him.

“It’s a heavy blow for Hakan but also for us,” said club sporting director Rudi Voller. “We’re also being heavily punished although Bayer 04 Leverkusen had nothing to do with the events in 2011. We are now missing a very important player in a crucial phase of the season.”

In his stead, excited wingers Julian Brandt and new boy Leon Bailey are set to be trusted with more senior minutes.

Leverkusen has Bundesliga tests against Eintracht Frankfurt and Augsburg before returning to Champions League duty in a visit from Atletico Madrid on Feb. 21.