Tuesday, January 1

Premier League

Willian: Chelsea want to keep ‘quality’ Luiz

Defender is out of contract in the summer.
By Matt McGeehan, | 14h

Willian believes Chelsea want to keep David Luiz, whose contract expires at the end of the season.

Blues head coach Maurizio Sarri has spoken of his desire for Brazil defender Luiz and midfield playmaker Cesc Fabregas, whose deal also runs out on June 30, to stay.

However, the club’s established policy of one-year contracts for players aged over 30 is a stumbling block which may need to be overcome, Sarri has admitted.

David Luiz, right, provided the assist for N’Golo Kante’s goal in Chelsea’s win at Crystal Palace (John Walton/PA)

Willian lauded the quality of Luiz after his compatriot created the decisive goal for N’Golo Kante in Sunday’s win at Crystal Palace with a pass few defenders are capable of.

Willian said: “We have to see if they club will want him. I think they want (him). For me, I want him to stay.

“David has a lot of quality to do these kind of passes.”

Sarri in early December said it would be very difficult to replace Luiz and Fabregas, who are both free to negotiate pre-contract agreements with foreign clubs from Tuesday.

But both players are 32 before the end of the season and want a longer deal than the one likely to be tabled by Chelsea.

Luiz is in his second spell at Chelsea, having had a two-year stint at Paris St Germain, and has re-established himself in the first XI after falling out of favour under Antonio Conte last term.

Fabregas is understudy to Jorginho and has expressed his frustration. The Spain international has been linked with a move.

Willian is relaxed about his Chelsea contract expiring in 18 months’ time (Nigel French/PA)

Willian’s own contract expires in June 2020, at the same time as Eden Hazard’s.

While there has been plenty of conjecture over Hazard’s future, with the Belgian admitting his quandary over whether to pursue a “dream” move to Real Madrid, Willian is happy to bide his time.

The 30-year-old joined from Anzhi Makhachkala in 2013 and signed a four-year contract in 2016. He had been expected to leave if Antonio Conte had stayed as boss, but under Sarri Willian is relaxed about his future.

He said: “I’m fine. No rush about that. We can talk about that in the future, no problem.”

Chelsea play Southampton at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, seeking to start 2019 with a victory after responding from the loss to Leicester in their last home match of 2018 with wins at Watford and Palace.

Willian added: “We have to get points. We want to stay there at the top. We have to win games.”

Connor Wickham says he can offer a different dimension for Crystal Palace (Mark Kerton/PA)

Palace, meanwhile, play Wolves, with striker Connor Wickham eager to offer a different option.

A serious knee injury led to a two-year absence for Wickham, who came off the substitutes’ bench against Chelsea, to provide an attacking focal point for Wilfried Zaha and Andros Townsend to play off.

“I bring a different element to the game,” Wickham said.

“Wilf and Andros are lightning quick and they’ll cause any defence in the league problems. I’m a different kind of threat to them.

“We’ve got ammunition. We’ve got great players in every position. If we can utilise ourselves and adapt to who is on the pitch we’ll become a better team.”

Palace are near to signing Dominic Solanke on loan from Liverpool, which could limit Wickham’s chances under boss Roy Hodgson.



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TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool2017304884054
2Manchester CityMan City20152354163847
3Tottenham HotspurSpurs20150543212245
4Chelsea20134338162243
5Arsenal20115442301238
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd2010554132935
7Leicester CityLeicester218582423129
8Wolverhampton WanderersWolves208572323029
9Everton217773130128
10Watford208482728-128
11West Ham UnitedWest Ham208392730-327
12Bournemouth2082102837-926
13Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton207492227-525
14Crystal Palace2054111726-919
15Newcastle UnitedNewcastle2046101527-1218
16Cardiff CityCardiff2053121938-1918
17Southampton2036112138-1715
18Burnley2043131941-2215
19Fulham2035121843-2514
20Huddersfield TownHuddersfield2024141235-2310
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TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool2017304884054
2Manchester CityMan City20152354163847
3Tottenham HotspurSpurs20150543212245
4Chelsea20134338162243
5Arsenal20115442301238
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd2010554132935
7Leicester CityLeicester218582423129
8Wolverhampton WanderersWolves208572323029
9Everton217773130128
10Watford208482728-128
11West Ham UnitedWest Ham208392730-327
12Bournemouth2082102837-926
13Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton207492227-525
14Crystal Palace2054111726-919
15Newcastle UnitedNewcastle2046101527-1218
16Cardiff CityCardiff2053121938-1918
17Southampton2036112138-1715
18Burnley2043131941-2215
19Fulham2035121843-2514
20Huddersfield TownHuddersfield2024141235-2310
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