Kevin Campbell says that it is simply unfair that Willian is being singled out for criticism as Arsenal’s poor run of form continues.
The Brazilian was signed for free from Chelsea in the summer after he was one of the standout players at the last Project Restart.
He was expected to become one of the leading players at Arsenal this season, leading from the front with performances.
But he has looked lost for much of the time that he has been at the club, causing fans and even pundits to blame him as part of the bigger problem at the club.
However, Campbell says while it is there to see that he isn’t the same player he was at Chelsea before he joined Arsenal, he isn’t the only player at the club that is underperforming at the moment.
He says that Arsenal’s problem is a collective one and not caused by a single player.
“Listen, Willian set himself very high standards at Chelsea and we are not seeing those at Arsenal,” he told Football Insider. “He will admit that himself.
“It is unfair to single him out because Arsenal are not playing well. Everyone seems to be mentioning Willian but it is a collective problem. It is not just one player.
“When one player is having a tough time, other players can help them out but we are not playing well enough at the moment. We cannot help him through it. It is a difficult time for him.
“Willian has such quality but at the end of the day Arsenal fans do not care about what he did for Chelsea. What have you done for us? He has to do it now.
“I understand there is a frustration among the fans. It is only natural when the team is playing this badly.”
Willian is actually a very good player. Imagine him in a Man City. He would walk right into that RW.
Sterling in this Arsenal team would be the worst player in the world.
Arteta’s tactics are just very rigid.
He doesn’t look able to beat the first man, which is normally bread and butter to him. It’s partly just confidence I think.
ESR doesn’t seem bound by tactical restrictions whenever he plays, and has always made a difference in his matches so far.
Willian and Pepe, are stat wise this season ahead of Saka in goals and assists .
He’s not playing even close to what was expected, but the frustration is more to do with the fact that he keeps getting picked than the performances themselves. I guess Arteta is wanting to use him as he’s an experienced player, and you want to go to these players when going through a bad run, rather than throwing youngsters onto pressure situations, but it’s not working.
Also you’d want him to be one of the leaders in the team, given his experience, but that was our mistake. He’s a quality player but not a leader to my mind.
I wasn’t aware that we were picking on Willian anymore than any other underperforming player. It’s the generosity of the contract that most of us hot under the collar about
Willian ,Pepe ,Xhaka ,Bellerin.
The main 4 players that get the wrath of the fans ,even though the whole team are just as bad .
And yes Willian is definitely getting picked on ,until he leaves then someone else takes his place ,rinse and repeat .
Well said..
Spot on SueP and a very merry Xmas to you and your family.
Jingle Bells Grandad!
The same to you and yours!
It’s a Zoom Christmas for us but hopefully real hugs with the grandkids in 2021
Nobody mentions Aubanayang? He’s been sulking for weeks now. In his interview post-Southampton, he was so self-piteous that he ought to have had a Scouse accent. Him, Xhaka, Mustafi and Laccazette are the enemy within. Oh, we mustn’t forget Meszut either.
It was but it’s been suggested that he was down😞