Chelsea: Willian’s most recent goal does not change the bigger picture

While Willian scored a beautiful curling winner against Newcastle United, he is still not Chelsea quality — and never will be.

No, there is no Willian agenda. He just is not good enough to be wearing a Chelsea shirt week-in and week-out, and that is the bottom line.

Willian’s goal Saturday was just the 49th in his five year career at Chelsea and just his 28th in the Premier League. While it is not all about goals, nearly any Chelsea fan who watches games regularly can tell you just how dreadful Willian can be to watch at times. There are times when he can produce magic for the Blues, but those moments are few and far between.

At the beginning of Willian’s time with Chelsea, there was a sense of optimism. He brought pace and skill to the the Blue’s attack. However, Willian was a short-term solution for a long-term problem that Chelsea has still yet to fix.

Ever since Arjen Robben left the club, Chelsea has had a gaping hole at right-wing. In order to compete for the Champions League again, the Blues need to acquire a world-class winger like it has on the left side. Eden Hazard has been starved of top-notch talent at right wing for way too long.

A Chelsea-quality winger needs to be one who scores, creates, and plays for the badge. Willian only does one of those things: the last one. Currently through 21 appearances this season Willian has tallied three goals and three assists. That is simply not good enough.

The Blues’ other regular option on the right, Pedro, has tallied seven goals and one assist in 18 appearances. Pedro seems to fit Maurizio Sarri’s style of play much better thus far. Pedro is accustomed to the quick-passing, possession style play from his time at Barcelona while Willian has played defensive, counter-attacking football at Chelsea. Sarri’s style works better with a winger like Pedro.

Neither of their statistics are quite good enough. Imagine what a talent like Callum Hudson-Odoi could do with the playing time that Willian and Pedro currently get. Both Pedro and Willian are over the age of 30 and both have exhausted their potential. Winger is a tough position to play as the player ages and Chelsea needs to stay young.

Hudson-Odoi is a generational talent, one that could really take the Blues’ wing-play to the next level. His pace, skill and ability to get a shot off – and score – is a breath of fresh air. Not only is Hudson-Odoi more than good enough to feature in the Chelsea squad weekly, he could easily become a star.

The youngster destroyed the youth leagues throughout his childhood and he has simply dominated at every level he has played thus far. Who is to say he could not become the Premier League’s next star youngster?

Not only would Hudson-Odoi be good for Chelsea from a financial standpoint, but he would also help put some belief back in the youth academy. Chelsea has never had a problem acquiring and developing young talent. The problem has been getting those talents into the first team, which is a whole other story. Chelsea could live to regret the sale of Hudson-Odoi to Bayern Munich. The last thing any Chelsea fan wants to see is their team sell another young star (see: Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku, and Mohamed Salah).

In all fairness, Willian could be kept around as a squad player solely because of his love for the club. He has stuck around through thick and thin, through good times and bad. However, he will be 31 this August and he is declining rapidly. Willian peaked in the 2015/16 season where he scored many key goals. It is time to move on and look to other options. Options that are already within the club.

There is no doubt Callum Hudson-Odoi and the newly-signed American Christian Pulisic could easily equal the output of Willian. Both are quicker than Willian at this point in his career, offer better link-up play and more of an eye for goal.

Chelsea should think hard about Barcelona’s offer for Willian, especially if it includes the exciting young talent Malcom. Malcom is another starlet the Blues could acquire to replace their rapidly aging wing-core. Malcom has loads of potential and is a player Chelsea should acquire if it is possible.

Willian should always be backed by the fans while he is a Blue, but his time at the club has passed.