'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
As the second half got underway at the Sammy Ofer Stadium in Tel-Aviv, Chelsea had the upper hand against the home team Maccabi Tel-Aviv. They had an early goal scored by Gary Cahill on their side and the Israeli team were down to 10 men.
Tal Ben Haim’s sending-off towards the end of the first half put the Blues firmly in the driving seat. There could be no excuses for Jose Mourinho’s side if they lost it from there, but the next 15 to 20 minutes of play from the visitors was far from a side in control.
Mourinho would himself remark after the game that his side were “sleeping” for the start of the second half and would wake up when they sensed danger. That point was about 73 minutes into the game, the man who brought about that change, was one on whom Chelsea have heavily relied on so far in the 2015/16 season.
Willian was brought down outside the box, slightly on the left. He was predictably the only one standing over the free-kick as an air of expectation surrounded him, buoyed by the 5 direct free-kicks he had already scored this season from similar positions.
The Brazilian did not disappoint, he would hit the mark and once again, more or less seal victory for his side. Oscar would register a goal soon after and assist one a little bit later by successfully finding Kurt Zouma in the box from a corner.
Willian’s stellar free-kick statistics
He is hardly the name you would expect to see on top the list of most free-kicks scored in a season. That honour is usually reserved for the likes of Bayer Leverkusen’s Hakan Calhanoglu or Miralem Pjanic who plies his trade at AS Roma. Yet, the Brazilian is sitting pretty as the leading scorer from freekicks in Europe’s top five leagues.
He’s netted 6 times with only 12 attempts so far, an astonishing 50% success rate so far. It is a statistic incredibly difficult for him to sustain till the end of the season, but his tally is already impressive as his closest rival is Pjanic who has struck 4 times for the Italian club.
The Champions League has been Willian’s stomping ground as 4 of his 6 goals so far this season have come in European competition (yes, the goals from direct free-kicks account for all his goals so far this season). The statistic that makes this all the more impressive is that it only took the 27-year-old 5 attempts to score his 4 goals (an 80% success rate), and he hit the bar with that spare free-kick in the 0-0 draw against Dynamo Kyiv.
What throws this feat in even sharper relief is that in 83 attempts by everyone else in the Champions League, only two have been scored, according to ESPN stats. The Brazilian has earned quite a reputation now and has goalkeepers quaking with worry every time he stands over the ball.
Willian’s winners
The fact that Willian has been Chelsea’s brightest spark this season is hardly lost on anyone. He is currently the club’s top scorer with a modest tally of 6 goals so far but considering that he’s not an out-and-out striker, it is not a bad return at all.
If you take a look at Willian’s past goalscoring record, you’d spot that this is his highest goalscoring tally for Chelsea since moving to London in 2013. The highest he has scored in a single season is a couple of times when he scored 8 times while at Shakhtar Donetsk.
There is something else about his goals this season, though. In the mini-revival that Chelsea have been trying to bring about after their disastrous start to the season, Willian has single-handedly carried the team in many games.
It is once again most evident in his Champions League performances. Starting from the top, in the opening fixture against the Israeli opposition at Stamford Bridge, Willian’s early goal set the tone for the Blues to romp home to a 4-0 victory.
Then he rescued a draw against Newcastle after Mourinho’s side had gone 2-0 down, but would fail to do the same against Porto despite equalising at the stroke of half-time. His early goal against Southampton would then be wiped out as the Saints registered a 3-1 win against the reigning champions.
Willian then came within inches of winning the game for his side in Ukraine, but he would see his well-struck free-kick only cannon off the bar to mark the only time he missed from a dead ball situation in Europe so far.
But what he couldn’t do away, he did at home. After his cross came off a Kyiv defender to land in the back of the net to cancel out the Ukrainian side’s 1-0 lead, Willian would seal the three points in what has become his trademark this campaign, the free-kick.
To round it off, his heroics against Maccabi once again led Chelsea to victory. If you put all of these performances together, it paints the picture of a player who has won his team nearly 10 points on his own, simply on the back of his goals. His performances that haven’t led to goals or victories are sadly diminished in a team that hasn’t lived up to his lofty heights.
If the Blues do get over the proverbial line with a draw or victory against Porto at Stamford Bridge, they will in small part owe it to the Brazilian bearing an afro on his head and magic in his feet.
