England Premier League: Brazilian Willian decides to stay with Fulham for another season

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Brazilian veteran midfielder Willian has decided to stay with Fulham for the 2023-2024 English Premier League season, with an option to extend for another year, as announced by the London club on Monday night.

The 34-year-old had reached the end of his contract with Fulham, which he signed in September 2022, and appeared to be on his way out, especially after visiting Nottingham Forest's training ground last week.

However, the former Chelsea and Arsenal player made the decision to remain with the team that finished last season in the Premier League's tenth position under the guidance of Portuguese coach Marco Silva, with a significant contribution from Willian. He played 27 matches in the Premier League and scored five goals for the team.

The club's website quoted Willian saying, "I am happy to sign with Fulham for another year," adding, "I'm happy to continue the work I did last season with all my teammates and the entire club. I believe this team is capable of achieving even better results this season."

Willian arrived in the Premier League in 2013, defending Chelsea's colors until 2020 before moving to cross-town rivals Arsenal on a three-year contract, which he completed only one season of before parting ways with the Gunners, stating it was the "worst time of my professional life."

He returned to his footballing beginnings at Corinthians in August 2021, signing a contract until December 2023, but he also didn't complete it and decided to leave in August 2022 due to threats received on social media.

During his English journey so far, Willian won league titles in 2015 and 2017, the FA Cup in 2018, the EFL Cup in 2015, and the UEFA Europa League in 2019, all with Chelsea. His European career began in 2007 with Shakhtar Donetsk in Ukraine, where he stayed until 2013 before moving to Anzhi Makhachkala in Russia in January of that year.

However, his time with the Russian team ended in August of the same year due to a financial crisis that led to the club's dissolution in 2022 following a decision by the sports authorities in Russia for failing to obtain a football playing license from the local federation. As a result, most of the players were sold.

AFP