How Chelsea can help Spurs in their bid to sign Willian

 
Willian of Shakhtar Donetsk
Getty
Tom Collomosse23 October 2012

Andre-Villas Boas wants Tottenham to make the signing of Willian from Shakhtar Donetsk their priority during the transfer window.

Spurs attempted to sign the Brazilian attacker during the summer but could not agree a deal with his Ukrainian club. However, Willian remains keen to move to the Premier League and head coach Villas-Boas wants his chairman Daniel Levy to make a second bid in the New Year.

Tottenham’s £11.8million offer in August was rejected by Shakhtar, who are regular Champions League competitors and do not need to sell. But with Emmanuel Adebayor expected to be absent during January because he is playing for Togo at the Africa Cup of Nations, Villas-Boas needs to increase his attacking options and believes Willian’s versatility — he can play as a forward or an attacking midfielder — would make his team more dangerous.

The key to whether a deal goes through is thought to be Shakhtar’s involvement in the Champions League. The club are fighting to escape a tough first-round group, which also contains Chelsea and Juventus, and have four points from their opening two matches.

The double-header against Chelsea, with the first match in Donetsk tomorrow, will shape Willian’s future. If Shakhtar finish the group strongly and qualify for the last 16, there will be little desire to allow the 24-year-old to leave. Should they be edged out by Chelsea and Juve, Tottenham’s chances of concluding a deal would increase significantly.

Willian has a release clause, believed to be about £32m, written into his contract. Spurs’ offer will not approach that but £15m would prove tempting.

The Ukrainian league shuts down for winter from the start of December until the beginning of March, meaning Willian would be short of competitive match practice if he did move to England in January. Villas-Boas coveted the player during his time in charge at Chelsea and, when he heard of Spurs’ interest in the summer, Willian said: “There are many players here in the same position, mostly Brazilians. The club buy and do not let go.

“That’s the problem. Everyone knows that I want out. I’ve been here for five years, won many titles, so I hope they respect my will. I do not regret coming here but this situation has been happening and we start to re-think.”

While Willian’s focus this week will be on attempting to damage Chelsea’s chances of defending their Champions League title successfully, Villas-Boas takes his team to Slovenian club NK Maribor in the Europa League, where Tottenham will attempt to record their first win in this season’s competition.

The two matches against Maribor represent a good chance for Spurs to impose their authority on the group after drawing their opening two matches with Lazio and Panathinaikos.

Spurs’ defeat by Chelsea on Saturday was their first since the loss at Newcastle on the opening day of the campaign and defender Jan Vertonghen admitted they needed to be more consistent during matches.

He said: “It’s almost the same every time, especially at home, where we always seem to be stronger in the second half than we were in the first. We have to think about putting two strong halves together.”

William Gallas struggled against the Blues but Vertonghen insists the 35-year-old, who has captained the side this season, still has plenty to offer.

The Belgian added: “With his experience, he is a very good player and a good captain for us. He treats me like I am his little brother and we talk a lot on the pitch, so that helps me.”

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