14 hours ago, Strider6003 said:

I like it when Willian comes off the bench as he brings more pace to the attack and direct running.

Given the criticism he gets I wonder how many goals he would get if Hazard was not around as he scores better coming from the left side.

Considering he didn't score that many in Shaktar either i'm guessing not many more.

3 goals in 32 appearances this league season then, 26 of those appearances coming from starts. 

Safe to say it’s not been a good year for him in the league and if not for CHO’s injury I think he’d be shuffled towards the exit this summer. 

With Hazard possibly going, if we do avoid the ban this summer you’ve got to think we’ll be looking for another winger, even with Pulisic coming in. 

Barca are welcome to him if they’re willing to come back for him this summer. Will go out with a squeak rather than bang me thinks. 

Can see him leaving this summer, I liked him as a player. High quality, skilful, quick, hard worker but his ability to score goals are awful.

 

8 hours ago, ForeverCarefree said:

3 goals in 32 appearances this league season then, 26 of those appearances coming from starts. 

Safe to say it’s not been a good year for him in the league and if not for CHO’s injury I think he’d be shuffled towards the exit this summer. 

With Hazard possibly going, if we do avoid the ban this summer you’ve got to think we’ll be looking for another winger, even with Pulisic coming in. 

Barca are welcome to him if they’re willing to come back for him this summer. Will go out with a squeak rather than bang me thinks. 

From my point of view, Willian has had one good season with us, and that was when he was a rotation player in Conte's first season. He's possibly the most overrated player I have seen play for the club. Half of the 6 seasons he has spent with us he has failed to get over 5 goals in the league, not once has he got to double figures. It's only this season that people outside of the club have noticed how limited he is.

If we can make signings and Hazard is sold, I think Willian should be sold too. Pulisic (fresh blood), Hudson-Odoi (young) Pedro (experience) and somebody new should be our wingers next season. Our attacking positions are in desperate need of refreshing.

5 hours ago, Scott Harris said:

From my point of view, Willian has had one good season with us, and that was when he was a rotation player in Conte's first season. He's possibly the most overrated player I have seen play for the club. Half of the 6 seasons he has spent with us he has failed to get over 5 goals in the league, not once has he got to double figures. It's only this season that people outside of the club have noticed how limited he is.

If we can make signings and Hazard is sold, I think Willian should be sold too. Pulisic (fresh blood), Hudson-Odoi (young) Pedro (experience) and somebody new should be our wingers next season. Our attacking positions are in desperate need of refreshing.

You say that but don't mention the season he won fans' and players' player of the year, which is a good example of why I don't take many of the opinions in this thread seriously. This season has probably been his worst, he's thirty years old now so that's hardly a surprise, but lets not try to rewrite history. 

1 minute ago, bluedave said:

You say that but don't mention the season he won fans' and players' player of the year, which is a good example of why I don't take many of the opinions in this thread seriously. This season has probably been his worst, he's thirty years old now so that's hardly a surprise, but lets not try to rewrite history. 

But this was in Jose's last season if i remember correctly. 

Really everybody was s**t, only Willian played like his usual season but because every body around him looked bad, he then looked like the only good player. 

And he put 2-3 freekicks in, so that helped. 

2 minutes ago, Nevamind said:

But this was in Jose's last season if i remember correctly. 

Really everybody was s**t, only Willian played like his usual season but because every body around him looked bad, he then looked like the only good player. 

And he put 2-3 freekicks in, so that helped. 

So, he was good despite everybody else was bad? And that somehow makes it not count? See again what I said about being unable to take peoples' opinions on him here seriously.

2 minutes ago, bluedave said:

You say that but don't mention the season he won fans' and players' player of the year, which is a good example of why I don't take many of the opinions in this thread seriously. This season has probably been his worst, he's thirty years old now so that's hardly a surprise, but lets not try to rewrite history. 

That being the season we hovered above the relegation zone for half the year? 

He scored a couple of spawny free kicks early on that season that were probably intended as crosses and because collectively the entire team were sh*t that year Willian wins the award for being a bit less sh*t than everyone else rather than having an outstanding season. 

15 minutes ago, bluedave said:

So, he was good despite everybody else was bad? And that somehow makes it not count? See again what I said about being unable to take peoples' opinions on him here seriously.

Only because the others were bad that doesn't make him good. In comparison thou, yes. 

The point is, he played like every other season. 

Edited May 13, 20197 yr by Nevamind

2 hours ago, bluedave said:

This season has probably been his worst, he's thirty years old now so that's hardly a surprise, but lets not try to rewrite history. 

Unfortunately, it's not his detractors that re-write history. It's those that admit he's been bad this season, but somehow think it's been a massive dropoff.

There hasn't been a dropoff. This is who Williian is. His offensive production has always been shocking. 

 

Edited May 13, 20197 yr by Skinnedy

Ah whatever, it's all been said before, multiple times, and I don't feel like going through it all again. What do Jose Mourinho, Antonio Conte, Mauricio Sarri and four different Brazil managers know anyway?

18 minutes ago, bluedave said:

What do Jose Mourinho, Antonio Conte, Mauricio Sarri and four different Brazil managers know anyway?

we have a phrase in American sports for supremely gifted players, who have all the physical tools in the world, but can't seem to ever have the production live up to that talent/potential...

Coach-Killers

Those types of players are so tantalizing... look at the quickness, look at the ability to beat a man off the ball, look at the technique on that set-piece... I'll be the ONE to unlock all of that potential.

What do they know now, that they didn't before? That they'll get sacked ?

Willian didn't have a bad season (for him). He had his normal season. It's everyone else's perspective that seems to have changed this year.

59 minutes ago, Skinnedy said:

we have a phrase in American sports for supremely gifted players, who have all the physical tools in the world, but can't seem to ever have the production live up to that talent/potential...

Coach-Killers

Those types of players are so tantalizing... look at the quickness, look at the ability to beat a man off the ball, look at the technique on that set-piece... I'll be the ONE to unlock all of that potential.

What do they know now, that they didn't before? That they'll get sacked ?

Willian didn't have a bad season (for him). He had his normal season. It's everyone else's perspective that seems to have changed this year.

So True.

We could all come up with a list of players similar to Willian, who on their day look like world-beaters but that day comes once or twice a season. Rest of the times he's very average and the stats even back that up. To compete with City and Liverpool we need players who will near the top of their game week in, week out. It's what Klopp touched on - there are some great players in every team but you need players who are CONSISTENTLY great and that's what we USED to have and what City and Liverpool have now. That's why I pray we can breathe some freshness into our squad for next season and do away with players like Willian who we know before a ball is kicked, won't be any better next season than what we have seen before.

2 hours ago, bluedave said:

What do Jose Mourinho, Antonio Conte, Mauricio Sarri know anyway?

That the board won't sign them any new wingers so they might as well play Willian? 

Hope he leaves this summer to Barca or PSG.

We need a fresh look to our attack with Eden leaving as well.

Hopefully we can bring in Jovic as our main striker along with bringing in another winger.

With Hazard leaving and us abandoning our over 30-policy for Luiz i am just waiting for a contract extension for Willian...

16 minutes ago, Sindre said:

With Hazard leaving and us abandoning our over 30-policy for Luiz i am just waiting for a contract extension for Willian...

You and me both... two year extension thru 2022

2 cynical reasons I thought Willian wasn't sold last summer.

1. Squad continuity. Sarri was coming in late and he didn't want to lose veteran presence 
2. He's tight with Hazard

Hazard is leaving, and Sarri should have a better grip in the dressing room this year. 

we'll see

I assume the theory, assuming Hazard is leaving, is that Willian would then switch to the left, which he supposedly prefers ? (at least until CHO is fit again).

So the front 3 becomes :

Willian - CF - Pulisic

1 hour ago, JMaher94 said:

Hope he leaves this summer to Barca or PSG.

We need a fresh look to our attack with Eden leaving as well.

Hopefully we can bring in Jovic as our main striker along with bringing in another winger.

I think the sides who MIGHT be interested in Willian are more likely to be the Newcastles and West Hams of this world!!

50 minutes ago, Nibs said:

I think the sides who MIGHT be interested in Willian are more likely to be the Newcastles and West Hams of this world!!

Nonsense... Willian's defensive contribution is EXACTLY what Barcelona needs to avoid yet another spectacular Champions League Flame-Out. You see how he plays AGAINST Barcelona. He'll be even better FOR Barcelona. He's their missing piece. He's the key. They'd be CRAZY not to come back for him after successive flops in the Champions League. 40M will be a bargain Barcelona... but we'll try to get by without him.

7 hours ago, bluedave said:

Ah whatever, it's all been said before, multiple times, and I don't feel like going through it all again. What do Jose Mourinho, Antonio Conte, Mauricio Sarri and four different Brazil managers know anyway?

Well Mourinho nearly relegated us with him starting and also tried to replace him with Cuadrado and Salah.

Conte got it right by dropping him into an impact role. Willian then threw a paddy (Emoji IG story/negative interviews) and caused a storm in the changing room.

Sarri started him this season and then replaced him with an 18 year old who has outperformed him and now dropped him to a more limited role and rarely plays 90 minutes. 

As for Brazil, what have they done Internationally in the years he's been playing? Embarrassed by Germany 7-1 is the only thing i can remember. I'm sure his 2 goals in his last 33 Brazil games, playing for such an attacking team is impressive though.

As useless as he is, and he is terrible 95 times out of a 100 imo, he was miles ahead of Pedro yesterday a Pedro could not even get a pass or cross on target.

 

Would sooner have to use Zappacosta and Alonso as back up to CHO and Pulisic next season that have Pedro and Willian as options. Sell them for whatever we can get.

20 hours ago, Nibs said:

I think the sides who MIGHT be interested in Willian are more likely to be the Newcastles and West Hams of this world!!

Yet PSG and Barcelona are clamouring for him. Makes zero sense.

On 13/05/2019 at 15:33, Sindre said:

With Hazard leaving and us abandoning our over 30-policy for Luiz i am just waiting for a contract extension for Willian...

It won't happen, the only reason the exception was made for Luiz is because his contract was running out immediately and there was all the uncertainty of the lingering and Rudiger potentially being injured for the start of next season. David was in the very rare position of having a seriously strong hand to play, leverage I can't see Willian having this time next year.

He is better than Pedro.. right now.. need him as a squad player...