After falling behind in the game, Arsenal came back strong to claim a resounding 4-1 victory over Molde in their Europa League clash on Thursday night.
With boss Mikel Arteta making numerous changes to his starting line-up after their 1-0 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford last Sunday, it was no surprise to see the Gunners look a little disjointed in the opening period.
And they paid the ultimate price for it when Molde’s Martin Ellingsen fired one home from well outside the area. But whilst Arsenal rallied to clinch all three points in their third group game of the competition, there was one man who put in a very poor performance: Willian.
The Greatest Bargains in Premier League history – How much did they cost?
World Class score: 95% | Expert score: 80% | Veteran score: 65% | Intermediate score: 45% | Amateur score: 30% | Try Again: 5%
The only outfield player to have started the game at Old Trafford and then on Thursday night, the Brazilian seemed to be the player most affected by the amount of changes made to the team. He lacked rhythm and cohesion with his teammates, and whereas his link-up play with Hector Bellerin and striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was excellent on Sunday, it was virtually non-existent against Molde.
As per Sofascore, he lost possession 12 times and couldn’t get into the game at all, making just 29 passes in total. He also registered no shots on goal whatsoever, whilst defensively, he didn’t contribute anything either, failing to make a single tackle or interception.
His display led to Arsenal icon Martin Keown to slam him after the game, saying: “Willian is coming back. You could see he’s not quite at the level maybe at Chelsea.”
With the Brazilian’s previous ties to Arsenal’s London rivals, and the fact he is 32, there is little room for patience when it comes to Willian. He should be hitting the ground running at the Emirates, but instead, since that opening day blitz against Fulham, hasn’t quite hit the heights just y