Chelsea: Willian has earned the right to settle into the symbolism of No. 10

Willian has been slow off the mark for Chelsea this season, owing to his international involvement over the summer and a subsequent injury. If only his critics were similarly inhibited.

The summer’s transfer window closes across Europe on Monday at varying times. There are still deals that could see Chelsea players moving onto pastures new before those deadlines hit. Judging by social media, top of that list for a number of Blues supporters – and I use that term in the loosest of senses – is Willian Borges da Silva.

Willian joined the Chelsea Football Club in August 2013, the manager at the time was Jose Mourinho. Despite a succession of managers since, Willian has remained a crucial player within the squad. Eden Hazard’s departure has seen the Brazilian take on the Belgian’s squad No. 10. That, too, was a bone of contention in certain quarters of the fanbase.

The No. 10 position in football is much revered owing to its association with some of the game’s finest players. Zinedine Zidane, Johan Cryuff, Ronaldinho, Diego Maradona and, of course, Lionel Messi, all legends of the beautiful game, wore the 10.

In Brazil, the role is known as – buzzword alert – the Meia Esquerda. That roughly translates back into English as “supported by Yer Da,” obviously excluding Maradona, who receives no support whatsoever.

This player-hate culture, which extends to Marcos Alonso and Cesar Azpilicueta, really is driven by social media trolls who simply want their 15 minutes of Andy Warhol time. It’s okay to have an objective opinion on any player, but there’s no excuse for “bravely” critiquing them by saying “get out of my club” or “our worst signing ever” from the sanctity of their bedroom. No sensible person can back that up.

It would be fair to say Willian has had a slow start to the current season. He was late back to Cobham following his involvement with Brazil at the Copa America. A hamstring injury further hampered his pre-season.

In a team with a striker that scores 20+ goals per season Willian’s perceived lack of goals would pass under the radar. The role of the No. 10 is a creative one. A quick look at the stats shows that Willian has either scored or assisted a goal 105 times in 294 games, around one in three. For a regular starter that’s not good enough when compared to Chelsea’s previous No. 10, Eden Hazard, although his stats are skewed because he did, at times, play as a “false 9.” However, Willian’s stats are comparable to Pedro’s.

source: TransferMarkt

The sad irony is Jose Mourinho forced Chelsea’s best No. 10 to depart the club in January 2014. Juan Mata’s stats during his Chelsea career outshone those of Eden Hazard. A goal or an assist every 1.5 games was Mata’s record for the Blues. Of a similar age to Willian and twice Chelsea’s Player of the Year, that sale appears to be madness now.

Willian will never be everyone’s favourite but he doesn’t deserve the disrespectful vitriol he’s afforded on social media. Assuming Willian is still with Chelsea when the European window has slammed shut for another few months, we should all pay tribute to the man’s contribution to the cause rather than slate him for staying loyal.

Willian is barely out of the traps yet. Let’s hold fire on what might be – there’s a long season ahead. Frank Lampard will need some experienced men to call on as the season progresses, and, in Willian, there’ll be no better option. We must give him our support.