The pros and cons of Willian leaving Chelsea

The pros and cons of Willian leaving Chelsea

Willian is on the verge of switching from West London to Arsenal at the end of his contract with Chelsea. A deal that is sparking huge debate between both sets of fans. 

Chelsea has offered Willian, who turns 32 on Sunday, a two-year extension but is holding out for three years. Arsenal has rumored to of offered the Brazilian what he wants and is likely to join shortly after Chelsea's Champions League match on Saturday. 

What I am most happy about, from Chelsea's point of view, is that we have tried to keep him at the club. I think Willian would have been a vital player to keep hold of. He has a level of experience at the highest degree, he has never had a long term injury in his career and has played over 40 games in each season for Chelsea since he arrived in 2013. 

This season, he has arguably been Chelsea's best player. Topping the charts with the most assists at the club and being our second highest goal scorer. Not to mention, since returning from the restart, he has scored four times and assisted another 3. For someone who is just about to turn 32, it looks as though he still has some time left to play. 

In a team full of youth and inexperience, Willian really stepped up to the plate this season. Being given the number 10 after Eden Hazard's departure, he has been vital to us reaching fourth and ensuring a Champions League spot next season. 

Frank Lampard even stated his hopes of keeping the Brazilian...

"We want him to stay but I also appreciate the fact this contract for Willian is a big deal because of his age."...“The way he is playing at the moment shows his worth to the squad and I hope it is something we can get to."

“Whichever way, he has been a great servant to the club and if we can get there, I’ll be happy. If not, I will certainly wish him well as I have a lot of time for him.” 

The only problem I have is how many years Willian wants on his contract. 3 years is clearly too much. Yes, he may play well for the next 18 months but what if his age starts to catch up with him? Now you are left paying a player until he is 35 years old on 100k a week. 

For me, I personally think a two year deal for him would have been reasonable enough. I am also happy that Chelsea has not been held to ransom and is willing to let him leave. I feel as though his demands are too much and he is trying to squeeze as much as he can after his stand out season. 

All this being said about Willian, there is another side to him. Lots of Chelsea fans may actually be happy to see the back of him, despite his success at Stamford Bridge. Supporters argue that Willian doesn't do enough as a winger going forward and if you look at his stats, they may have a point...

In his entire Premier League career at Chelsea, he managed to score only 37 goals and assist 33 times in 234 appearances. His best goal-scoring season didn't even see him reach into double digits. 

Even in our 2014/15 title-winning season, shockingly, both John Terry and Willian had the same amount of goal involvements (5) with both playing over 35 games each. 

As successful as Willian has been for Chelsea over his last 7 years, I feel he should've had more of an impact on us. His goal contributions simply aren't good enough. I expect my winger to be reaching at least 10 goals a season if we want to compete with the top dogs every year. 

There is no doubt for one second that Willian would be a valuable player to keep in our squad in terms of experience and rotation but it looks as though we have seen the last of him in a Blues shirt.