Chelsea's Willian gets the two-page-spread treatment in the latest issue of France Football magazine, and while that's hidden behind a paywall and screencaps are blurry (and are in French), some quotes are starting to filter out into the media at large.
First and foremost are quotes about his future at Chelsea and some rumored interest over the summer from PSG.
"I read about PSG's interest, but I never received a concrete offer. My family is feeling good in London and I really like the Premier League, which is the best league in the world for me."
"I am still growing and we are playing some beautiful football. I aim to see out my contract here for all these reasons. And perhaps I can even sign a renewal if the club want me to stay. I would be privileged to finish my career at a big club like Chelsea."
-Willian; source: France Football via Goal
Willian signed a four-year extension in July to tie him to the club until 2020. Since his arrival in 2013, Willian has been ever-present in the lineup, locking down the starting spot on the right flank and beating out several contenders like André Schürrle, Juan Cuadrado, and Mohamed Salah. Not one to dazzle with extreme goalscoring totals, Willian was nonetheless second on the team last season with 11 goals, providing one of the few bright spots in an otherwise horrible season. His free-kick streak in the fall was the stuff of legends and he leveraged that early season success into winning Chelsea's Player of the Year award.
After a summer of change, things are starting to look up at Chelsea, too, and Willian's enjoying the new challenge and the new coach's ideas.
"He's a great manager. He's proved it with Juventus and Italy. I'm certain he'll know a lot of successes here. We started well, but then we dipped a bit. That's normal, though, messing up at the beginning. We're going to grow and we have faith in our manager."
"[What differentiates him from Mourinho and Hiddink is] maybe how demanding he is. He doesn't let anything go. You can't relax one minute, otherwise he's already on you. He's also very insistent on tactical work, the details. He knows that at the highest level, it's the small things that can make a big difference. Positioning on an attacking corner, for example. I personally like his way of seeing things. There's no reason the way I play cannot adapt to what he asks of us."
Willian also talked a bit about his mother's condition that, as we learned the other day, is unsurprisingly affecting his every days even when he's thousands of miles away in England.
"She's the one who gives me strength, as she's been undergoing chemotherapy and brain surgeries for two years. It's from this strength that I get the energy to go to training every day. It's hard to be away from those you love in times like those. I can only pray and hope she gets better."
-Willian; source: France Football via Sport Witness
Hopefully everything does indeed turn out well.
Willian will be playing for Brazil later tonight, starting against Venezuela in place of the suspended Neymar.