Willian joined Arsenal on a three year deal in the summer, but the Gunners weren’t the only team that was rumoured to be interested in signing him.
The Brazilian had been one of the most experienced and reliable players at Chelsea, the Blues wanted to keep him, but both parties disagreed on the contract terms on offer.
He was then open to joining any other European team that could meet his demands.
One team that was constantly being linked with a move for him when he was at Chelsea was Barcelona.
The Catalans had previously been touted as a possible destination for Willian and it was understandable that they were linked with a free transfer for him.
But he has just revealed that there wasn’t a concrete transfer offer from Barcelona and that he was only going to join a team that showed him why they wanted him and that is exactly what Arsenal did.
Asked whether he was close to joining Barcelona instead of Arsenal, Willian told FourFourTwo:
‘There are always rumours, but I didn’t know about any other official offer. ‘Indeed, there was a lot of talk about Barcelona for the past few seasons, but I wouldn’t have gone there just because they’re Barça.
‘I wouldn’t go to any club without hearing about their targets and what they wanted from me.
‘It wouldn’t be nice to be there or anywhere else if you weren’t going to be a big part of the project and didn’t play much.
‘Arsenal were the only club to show me a project that would fit with my ambitions, and they’re one of the biggest clubs in the world.’
Enough self importance and more performances on the pitch. Too much talking and little to show for it on the pitch.