Willian

[GDeep™]

Just talking about ways in which I’d be able to stomach this deal. Not keen as it is, and think 3 years would be crazy.

Doubt there’s anything to this story tbh.

Fair enough. I think it’s between us and Sp**s. Jose knows him but we have bit of a Brazilian flavour.

 

[field442]

He wants 3 years ffs, why do you and others keep talking about 2 years? @field442 is kidding himself it’ll probably be a 2+1 or something, lad wants 3 years, that’s the current gripe at Chelsea.

Also don’t forget the sign on fee you pay a new agent, will be a good few million.

I'm not kidding myself about anything. I'd prefer it to be a 2+1 but don't give a **** if it's 3 years. Why should i give a ****? When he's 34/35 Saka should be tearing it up and Willian will either be on the bench pocketing £120k a week or ****ed off somewhere else. Makes no difference to me.

 

[Mitch]

How would people feel if we signed both Willian and Fraser? I like the prospect of having 3 attacking midfielders that are all pacey and who are very good dribblers.

I thought Pepe showed how beneficial it is to have a player of these attributes which we havent seen for many years.

Fraser - I know I've said I dont want Saka and Martinelli having reduced playing time next season and I would like to see one of the two starting at LW. However I do have a soft spot for Fraser as I thought brilliant last season at LW. Fraser's form this season i thought suffered due to him being played more centrally behind the striker with King to accommodate King more into the team. They also utilsed Fraser on the right wing in the second part of season and Fraser is much more effective player on the left wing cutting in.

I can see Pepe and Willian (in AMC role) linking up well togther stylistically.

 

[krengon]

I'd take him over Fraser tbh..

 

[Mitch]

I thought Sp**s would of have enough options in their attacking midfield (its their strongest position) with Son (one of the best players in the league)Alli (Jose's rejuvenated him), Bergwijn (has looked impressive) Moura and Lamela. With Gelson Fernandes likely to be made permanent.

 

[truth_hurts]

Yet to see a decent argument as for why Willian on a free transfer would be poor move by the club. Willian being 32 at the start of next season, or Chelsea refusing to meet his contract demands or Cech and Luiz being Chelsea rejects and not helping us are all completely poor and ignorant reasons to not sign him.

For starters there is no evidence that Willian is slowing down and while he entering the later stage of his career on a free transfer it is not something that should deter us from signing him when there is need for a player with his skill set for this team.

Chelsea refusing to meet his demands doesn't speak for his ability and is a rather stupid contract policy they have in regard to not signing over 30 players to more than one year. Don't get me wrong in some instances players fall of a cliff once they reach 30/31 years but not every player starts their career at the same age and some guys have done a lot less miles than others at that point in their careers.

While Cech and Luiz arguments are poor mostly because it assumes all players are the same and can't be good beyond 30 but also because despite Luiz being past his best he has been our best performing CB this season. That may not mean a great deal given the standard isn't very high but if Willian can come in and be a worthy addition to the squad like Luiz has then overall we have improved without spending, which for a team with limited funds is important.

Here's the reason I would sign him:

Firstly his experience and nationality would be welcome to our young squad. We have a number of young wingers who need guidance and someone to take the pressure off of them whilst they develop. That person shouldn't stand in their way but should be there to step up when they go through a rough patch and Willian could be just that. Whilst Willian being Brazilian is something that could become important down the line as we have the foundation to be the premier leagues club of choice for not only Brazilian players but many South American players. We have the connections to get the best talent out of South America and should we sign these guys then they will need help adjusting which is where the likes of Luiz and Willian could help get these guys settled.

More importantly he can actually offer something on the pitch. We have a massive issue currently with volume of chances created and Willian is ranked 13th league wide when it comes to creating chances per90 (minimum 10 games played). Which is 1 spot behind Özil who is considerably ahead of our next best creator in Pepe. Moreover we have a significant issue with controlling possession in the final third and being dangerous in the opposition penalty box which is where Willian's technical ability excels the most. He ranks 4th in the league with passes into the 18 yard box. Our current side has a serious lack of technical ability which is what Willian can address which on a free makes sense given we will be spending our funds improving other areas of the pitch.

Same. I'm not seeing much of a rationale for not signing him. He's 31, but so is our best player. David Silva is still a top 5 central player in the league and is 34. I think the 30+ argument doesn't wash with a player like Willian.

The other argument presented is that Chelsea allegedly don't want him, which again doesn't appear to be true. There is also no proof that Willian wants a 3 year deal.

His wages are a pittance for a layer with such credentials. To go from Mkhi and Iwobi to Pepe and Willian on the wings in a year would be a huge improvement.

Completely agree that we lack technical ability and leadership. I'm for Willian to be honest.

 

[truth_hurts]

How would people feel if we signed both Willian and Fraser? I like the prospect of having 3 attacking midfielders that are all pacey and who are very good dribblers.

I thought Pepe showed how beneficial it is to have a player of these attributes which we havent seen for many years.

Fraser - I know I've said I dont want Saka and Martinelli having reduced playing time next season and I would like to see one of the two starting at LW. However I do have a soft spot for Fraser as I thought brilliant last season at LW. Fraser's form this season i thought suffered due to him being played more centrally behind the striker with King to accommodate King more into the team. They also utilsed Fraser on the right wing in the second part of season and Fraser is much more effective player on the left wing cutting in.

I can see Pepe and Willian (in AMC role) linking up well togther stylistically.

Think signing both would be overkill unless we went towards a 4-4-2 formation and that is very unlikely. I'd be happy with Fraser or Willian. Think I'm leaning towards Willian now though.

 

[UpTheGunnerz]

I feel like many people might be averse to it because they feel like the receivers of Chelseas sloppy seconds, and i can understand that somewhat (not saying at all that this is the case for anyone here, more a general thought)
However, Willian is PL proven at a high level and to me does not show signs of decline. Three years contracts is way over the top though

 

[GDeep™]

Don’t forget we’re linked with Kurzawa too. Not a top player. When you potentially combine these deals, on paper looks a poor window and not one that is going to kick you on.

 

[hydrofluoric acid]

Don’t forget we’re linked with Kurzawa too. Not a top player. When you potentially combine these deals, on paper looks a poor window and not one that is going to kick you on.

Raul has done it again hasn't he?

 

[picsou]

too bad we let this one go, hope we can get him back ! More future than signing Willian now...

 

[OnlyOne]

Don’t forget we’re linked with Kurzawa too. Not a top player. When you potentially combine these deals, on paper looks a poor window and not one that is going to kick you on.

Don't think we'll sign either Willian, Fraser or Kurzwa, similar to last year, linked with similar people and didn't sign them.

 

[GDeep™]

Don't think we'll sign either Willian, Fraser or Kurzwa, similar to last year, linked with similar people and didn't sign them.

Rumours are Raul has told the playing side that expensive transfers are off the table and we’ll concentrate on free players. Not only us, seems this will apply across the board unless you’re City, Utd and Liverpool.

 

[GDeep™]

Maybe I just have to be more realistic? My wish list is young guys who could develop a team similar to the rise of Liverpool, with signings like Demirel, Soyuncu, Partey, Aouar, Osihmen etc.

 

[MutableEarth]

I'd take him over Fraser tbh..

Agree. I'm OK with the idea of him playing #10 aswell tbh. I think @Tom349 makes a good argument - as long as we have the future in mind, I can get on board. Just so long as he doesn't hog all the minutes and that we're clear he's a transitional player while the young talents get some experience without the pressure of being immediate starters.

 

[GDeep™]

Raul has done it again hasn't he?

If “done it again” is getting us to mid table, then yeah.

 

[Tir Na Nog]

Don’t forget we’re linked with Kurzawa too. Not a top player. When you potentially combine these deals, on paper looks a poor window and not one that is going to kick you on.

This is thing, forget about us falling miles behind Liverpool and City we're slipping behind Chelsea and United now I feel. They're the ones making the smart moves they seem to have a plan in place. Sp**s it's hard to know, while Leicester it's hard to know if they can sustain things. Everton have a top manager now too. We could find ourselves in a position where we're fighting just to get back in the top 6 and even that won't be easy.

We have to be careful here, the odd signing like Willian might be alright but when you're signing Sokratis, Lichsteiner, Luiz, Willian, Kurzawa in successive windows your transfer policy has to come under serious scrutiny especially if the team doesn't actually improve with these signings.

 

[field442]

If we don’t sign someone like this we will go into the season with only Özil as an option at no.10. There’s not a chance they spend whatever limited funds we have in that area of the pitch. Signing nobody would be worse than signing Willian.

 

[Aussie_gunner123]

Rumours are Raul has told the playing side that expensive transfers are off the table and we’ll concentrate on free players. Not only us, seems this will apply across the board unless you’re City, Utd and Liverpool.

Well thats Partey off the table then obviously, I'm honestly starting to think we can say goodbye to this transfer anyway the longer our current board & Kroenke are with the club. It's clear to see our current board have no major ambitions unfortunately which is ridiculous & sad for this great club in the past. I'll tell that right to their face if I have to haha.

 

[Red London]

Don’t forget we’re linked with Kurzawa too. Not a top player. When you potentially combine these deals, on paper looks a poor window and not one that is going to kick you on.

Yeh if we sign Willian it would have to be a cherry on the top signing given we have invested our funds at CM and CB. If he’s one of our main signings of the window then I’m going to be 100% convinced that Raul and Edu suck agent ****.

So far they’ve helped us with it I.e Pepe, Martinelli but also done some weird stuff. We’re gonna learn more and more every window. This summer may be a tough one to deal with though, maybe Willian will be the only player we can afford given the financial climate.