Sport
Is Willian the Premier League’s most underrated player?
Even at a club like Chelsea, when the going gets tough, the cream rises to the top. The days of John Terry, Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba ruling the Blues dressing room are long gone; it has had to adapt to a new era and a different kind of leader. There are those who shout and bellow even now, but over time, the hard-working, quiet but consistent type has become more important than ever. It is time to pay homage to Chelsea’s forgotten star, Willian.
As a Brazilian international playmaker, there will always be a certain kind of pressure on his shoulders. Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, Kaka and so many others have not just inspired a generation, but set the bar for them, too. But Willian arrived in England, at Chelsea, back in 2013 more likely than most to succeed in the Premier League. He was used to the European climate at its worst; spells in Ukraine and Russia, with Shakhtar Donetsk and Anzhi Makachkala, had not only taught him a tough lesson about snow, ice and freezing temperatures, but more importantly how harsh football can be if you are not physically or mentally in good shape.
Jose Mourinho wanted him at Stamford Bridge as soon as he sensed an opportunity. Willian was set to join a former Blues boss, Andre Villas-Boas, at Tottenham Hotspur and had even undergone his medical. It takes a lot for Mourinho to really respect and rely on a creative player, because talent alone is never enough. His treatment of Mesut Özil at Real Madrid, Juan Mata at Chelsea and most recently Henrikh Mkhitaryan at Manchester United proves he is not above ruthless action if he doesn’t believe they are working hard enough. Willian is, perhaps harshly, perceived as someone who doesn’t have the ability to win games out of nothing, like Brazil teammate Neymar or fellow Chelsea man Eden Hazard. He is often ignored in favour of the bigger stars, particularly when it comes to the team sheets, but that has only served to make him one of the most underrated players around today.
When Hazard fails, Willian often steps up and, crucially, he has done that in some of the tougher moments of the Blues’ recent history. This season has been poor, with Antonio Conte’s current Premier League 19 points off pacesetters Manchester City and clinging on in the race for the top four. Defeat in their Champions League tie with Barcelona, which kicks off at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday, would be disastrous, but still Willian can hold his head high. To many, he is just a support act, but whenever he is needed, he is there. Chelsea headed to Brighton last month off the back of five straight draws, though they progressed in the FA Cup on penalties against Norwich; the pressure was very much on, but they started impeccably. They went two goals up in just six minutes at the Amex Stadium courtesy of a goal of the month contender from Willian, who finished off a flowing move with an emphatic strike from distance, which followed Hazard’s opener.
He took just two minutes to make his mark in Friday’s FA Cup fifth round tie at home to Hull City, opening the scoring with a curling effort from distance before making it 3-0 after 32 minutes with another tidy finish. With no Hazard, it was his chance to shine and, unsurprisingly, he took it.
Funnily enough, Willian’s strongest season on an individual level, or at least when he stood out most, was in 2015/16, the year that still has to be explained. Chelsea had cruised to the Premier League title the season earlier, and Mourinho’s second spell at Stamford Bridge looked to be in full swing, Collective failings from stars such as Hazard and Diego Costa, as well as other more controversial factors, made the manager’s position untenable by December and he was sacked just before Christmas with the team in 16th place. Relegation was never a real possibility, but Willian was the one man to come out of that season with any sort of credit, under Mourinho or his temporary replacement Guus Hiddink.
That is what makes Willian so special. He is not a leader like Terry, Drogba or current captain Gary Cahill and he will not rouse the dressing room with an impassioned speech before the game or at half time with defeat staring them in the face; but he can take games by the scruff of the neck, be relied upon whenever he plays and give everything for the cause, something Conte would not likely say about many others in private.
There has been a lot of change over the 15 years of the Abramovich reign and there looks like being more in the summer. Conte, another huge Willian fan, looks set to leave his post. Whoever comes in to replace him will have a thankless job getting a sustained tune out of the team, because the majority of Abramovich’s managers have struggled if they stay beyond a year.
Chelsea have had many world class players who grab the headlines much more often than Willian, but not many have been more reliable than him, regardless of issues on or off the pitch. It is about time he was recognised.
