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Chelsea’s veteran displayed his experience to progress his side past Lille – opinion

Chelsea defeated Lille 2-1 in the Champions League on Tuesday evening to progress to the knockout stages of the competition, as the runner-up in their group behind Valencia.

It was a largely subdued performance as their French opposition rarely threatened them, but one of the Blues more senior members stood out to make sure Frank Lampard’s side booked their place in the last-16. Willian commanded the right channel, consistently threatening the club that finished bottom of Group H, to make sure there was little doubt over the result.

In possession Willian was outstanding, comfortably surpassing his opposite winger Christian Pulisic who was substituted just after the hour mark, with the Brazilian making over double the number of passes of his American counterpart. When the 2019 Copa America winner pushed forward into wide areas, he was on hand to deliver seven crosses for teammates and had the joint highest number of accurate crosses. Willian’s long balls were the most impressive aspects of his performance, all six of the long passes he attempted were successful, showing he had the vision and accuracy to release teammates over long distances.

When the Chelsea winger was required to thread the needle to create chances for others, he was exceptional, along with his counterparts in the forward line. All three of them made a trio of key passes, displaying tremendous creativity in the final third. Willian was also the only member of the attacking unit who successfully assisted a teammate, opening his account in the Champions League this campaign.

If Willian wasn’t setting up his fellow players, the busy Brazilian was taking on opportunities himself. He had the most shots of any Chelsea player, four, and the joint highest number of shots on target with two. Furthermore, the winger successfully took on and dribbled past seven opposition players, while being fouled double the number of times any other Blues player was, highlighting how much trouble he caused the Lille defence.

With his contract due to expire at the end of the season, Lampard should do all he can to convince Willian to sign an extension, with performances such as this under the pressure of qualification to the knockout round showing what a valuable asset he is to the West London side.

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