Marseille chairman Vincent Labrune has claimed that Gilbert Imbula resisted lucrative offers from Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco in order to join Les Phoceens.
The 20-year-old agreed a €7m (£6.1m) switch to the Stade Velodrome from newly-promoted Ligue 1 side Guingamp last month.
"We paid €7m without add-ons for Imbula," Labrune told L'Equipe. "Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco were keen to pay almost double.
"We would not have signed him without the willingness of the player to join us. Players come here for the challenge. The wages do not lead them."
Imbula, a French Under-21 international, made his Ligue 2 debut for Guingamp in 2009.
