Tuesday, 23rd October, 2012
Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Willian believes he would have an impossible task choosing between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, if his current club accepted bids from the pair.
Willian claims that both English Premier League sides submitted offers for his services in the summer, but Shakhtar Donetsk turned them down, considering the amounts on the table to be too low.
Indeed, the Ukrainian side’s coach Mircea Lucescu accused Chelsea in particular of trying to buy Willian "at Eastern European prices" when, the Romanian believes, the midfield schemer is worth just as much as Eden Hazard, a player the Blues paid €40M to sign from Lille.
Willian was initially chased by Chelsea when Andre Villas-Boas was in charge and the Portuguese has kept his interest alive since landing the job at Tottenham over the summer.
And the Brazilian knows that, sooner or later, he could have to choose between Chelsea and Tottenham – and he would be flummoxed, especially as he has developed a personal friendship with the Spurs boss.
"There were two offers in the summer: One from Chelsea and one from Tottenham", the 24-year-old told Brazilian daily Lance.
relatedNewsStory"It becomes difficult to choose between the two. I don’t know.
"Tottenham are a big club and have a good person as manager.
"Andre Villas-Boas wanted me at Chelsea and he also tried with Tottenham.
"He sends me messages all the time. We are in contact and he has become a good friend.
"And Chelsea, well, they are Chelsea.
"A great team with great players who are champions of the Champions League."
Willian will be hoping Shakhtar Dontesk can put a dent in Chelsea’s hopes of retaining the Champions League this season though, when the Ukrainians welcome the English side to the Donbass Arena this evening.
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