Breaking: Willian finally a Gunner!
Willian has agreed to join Arsenal on a three-year, £100k-a-week deal, according to reports – despite the club’s plans to make 55 staff redundant.
Willian 'agrees' Arsenal transfer from Chelsea https://t.co/nE2SUjqk9c pic.twitter.com/hIAm09QLmF
— The Sun Football ⚽ (@TheSunFootball) August 6, 2020
The Brazilian winger, 31, rejected Chelsea’s latest two-year contract extension offer – demanding three years or no deal.
The Blues have a long-standing policy of not offering players aged 30 or over any more than one-year extensions.
The club believed they had compromised enough and played hardball with the ex-Shakhtar Donetsk star.
And Arsenal have taken advantage of the West London stand-off by handing Willian a three-year contract worth £100,000 per week, say ESPN.
PES 2021 appeared to have given the game away after Willian was seen in an Arsenal shirt in a seven-second clip.
Arsenal have partnered with video game series Pro Evo – whose game rivals the FIFA franchise as the biggest on PS4 and Xbox One.
The clip says “new signing” at the beginning and appears to show the 31-year-old Brazilian in Arsenal colours with “Willian” across the screen.
A PES 2021 watermark is visible in the bottom left corner.
Willian’s agent Kia Joorabchian recently told talkSPORT his player has had two offers from Premier League clubs.
And he claimed that five clubs in all were interested in a deal, including one from the MLS.
Joorabchian said: “We had big offers – one from MLS which required him to move on July 1 – but he’s always wanted to finish the season at Chelsea and the day after the season has finished he would decide.
“He has two concrete offers from Premier League clubs on the table, an offer from an MLS club, and two other offers from Europe
“He is going to make his decision after the last game of the season.
And with the season now over, reports would suggest he has plumped to stay in London with the Gunners.
But the move will likely anger Arsenal fans further.
Gooners – including Ian Wright and Piers Morgan – were left livid on Wednesday after the club revealed they were making 55 non-playing staff members redundant.
That tally is around ten percent of the entire workforce.
With owner Stan Kroenke worth around £6billion and bench-warmer Mesut Ozil earning £350,000 a week, it’s clear to see why the redundancies revelation left a bitter taste in the mouths.
read also:Rudiger: It’ll be sad if Willian leaves
Arsenal legend Wright tweeted: “Remember who you are, what you are and who you represent!!!”
And Gunners-mad Piers Morgan also launched into a typically ferocious rant.