Thursday 22 December 2016 11:04, UK
Willian opens up to Sky Sports about his journey to Chelsea from Brazil via Ukraine, the secrets of his free-kick success, the lowdown on Antonio Conte’s 3-4-3 tactics and what the Blues need to do to win the Premier League…
We're in the dugout at Cobham FC, the Surrey side who play at the lowest level of semi-professional football in England, just down the road from Chelsea's manicured training base. The dressing room is clean enough but cosy too. As Willian prepares for a training session, he has time to reflect on unfamiliar surroundings.
Ever seen a changing room like this one? "Never in England," he tells Sky Sports. "This is small." Not that it's completely alien to the Brazilian who grew up in the city of Ribeirao Pires in Sao Paulo state. What were they like there? "Worse than this one," he says as thoughts drift back to the start of a journey that's taken him to the Premier League.
Willian's homeland has been on his mind of late. Earlier this month, he paid tribute to the victims of the Chapecoense disaster and their families upon scoring Chelsea's winner against Manchester City.
Brazil is his country. But it's one he had to leave soon after his 18th birthday in pursuit of his goals. There are frequent trips back, even a World Cup there in 2014, but most of his memories are of his childhood. The days in Sao Paulo when he played only for the love of the game in his old Topper boots.
"I've got many memories but I don't even remember when I started," he says. "It's difficult when you start to play football. My boots were much worse." And what of the pitches? "They didn't even have grass." However, he resists the romantic notion that this helped his technique. "No! It was difficult," he insists.
A childhood friend of Chelsea team-mate David Luiz - "I brought him back! He's just the same, he never changes" - Willian's story since then is a modern one. For some, Brazil is a footballing cauldron but the global reality of the game's economics meant that the player had to head for the ice cold of Eastern Europe to progress his career.
It's a familiar route for Brazilian footballers but one that demands commitment. Only the strong of mind and body truly flourish. "It was difficult because everything was changed," he recalls of his move to Shakhtar Donetsk. "It was totally different. I am living in Sao Paulo and then I'm in Ukraine living in a small city called Donetsk. There's the weather, the language.
"I went there with my family. That helped a little bit and I ended up staying there for five-and-a-half years. It was important there that I had so many Brazilian players. There were guys like Fernandinho and Douglas Costa and they helped me a lot. It was difficult because it was very cold there. I think it was sometimes minus 20 or even minus 25."
Willian readily admits that the experience toughened him up. Perhaps it also explains why he was able to maintain his standards while so many at Stamford Bridge suffered such a damaging dip last season. Amid the worst ever Premier League title defence, Willian had the best goalscoring season of his career and picked up the club's player of the year award.
"I was happy with my performances last season but it is difficult when the team doesn't go the same way," he admits. "But I always try to do my best on the pitch. Last season I was good but this season I want to do much better. I have to improve and I think I can do it. Of course, this season the team is much better and playing with more confidence."
The results bear it out. After a slow start under Antonio Conte, a formation switch sparked a dramatic upturn in form. Chelsea have won 11 Premier League games in a row. There was the 4-0 win over Manchester United, topped next time out at Stamford Bridge by the 5-0 victory over Everton. Tottenham were beaten too. And then there was that win at City.
Willian keeps returning to the word "confidence" when asked to explain the turnaround, citing the performances of Victor Moses at wing-back - "he's a great player, so powerful" - as an example, but it's the decision to adopt the 3-4-3 that's seen Moses accommodated that's been the catalyst for that confidence.
"We have changed it a little bit," he explains. "There's more freedom. I have more freedom to play. I can move inside, I can go to the left and to the right and I think it's much better. The new formation helps players like me, helps Diego [Costa] and helps [Eden] Hazard in front. We can move around as we have that freedom."
Not that freedom on the pitch should be interpreted as a lack of control by Conte. Life under the Italian is anything but easy. "It's intense," says Willian. "He likes to work. We train hard. Sometimes it's two hours of intense training. We always have a plan going into the game and we have to trust in the plan. We've done that.
"The way we are training makes us more confident in the games too. We can run and put pressure on the opponents. And when you win game by game, this brings even more confidence. We have to keep it going. The target is to stay together and to play together. If we trust in our team-mates then we have a great chance to win the title this season."
Chelsea's absence from Europe will help. "We have a whole week to train so there's more training," adds Willian. "There's no rest. Sometimes he gives us one day. But we like the way we train and we trust the manager. But we miss the Champions League. To play Champions League is good and that's why we are working hard this season to get back."
Willian isn't afraid of hard work, he's shown that already. And after a journey that's taken him halfway around the globe, he's finally feeling at home. "I like to play for Chelsea and I like to live in London," he adds. "My family like it as well so I hope I can stay here many years. I think the best moments of my career are coming up."
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