Hopefully without the belly…
Chelsea winger Willian has talked about his playing style, and insisted that we wants to be more like his hero, Brazil star Ronaldinho.
It’s a curious comparison – while both players are Brazilian attacking midfielders, their playing style couldn’t really be more dissimilar.
Ronaldinho is all flair, with amazing touch, control and technique. For a while at his peak he was also a speedy, but the majority of his career has been spent well below full fitness.
Willian on the other hand is all hard work, tackling back and pressing up the pitch. He has his moments of flair – as we saw when he used Ronaldinho’s trademark elastico in Brazil’s friendly against Turkey – but he generally uses his pace to beat his man.
Speaking to the Chelsea website, Willian revealed how he admired Ronaldinho’s change of pace:
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“Ronaldinho is one of my favourite players. He is somebody I have always looked up to. Sometimes when you watch him you see him dribble with the ball quickly, to use his acceleration and skill together to inject speed into a move.
“Other times you see he is very steady and calm with the ball. He slows it down, and then with a bit of magic he does something special. That sort of style is part of the Brazilian culture.”
Willian admitted earlier this month that he needs to score more goals, and he will have the perfect opportunity against West Brom on Saturday.