The winger of Chelsea, Brazil’s Willian, said that there was “no chance” of him staying at Chelsea had Antonio Conte remained the manager, but now he is happy under Maurizio Sarri.
Football news: The winger now wants to forget the past and commit to a new season under new manager
Barcelona and Manchester United had their eyes on Willian while the former had already bid to secure him over the summer, but were out off as the Blues demanded more than £60 million for the player.
The 30-year-old player was a key member in last year’s squad, but he did not see eye-to-eye with former manager Antonio Conte.
In his Instagram post of FA Cup celebration pictures, he put trophy emojis on the picture of the former Chelsea manager. However at present the Brazilian does not want to leave the club.
"Would I be here if Conte stayed? No chance. No," he said. "I'm here. I'm here because I want to play for Chelsea. I will only leave if Chelsea want me to go."
In the opening Premier League match against Huddersfield on Saturday, Chelsea won 3-0, thanks to goals from N’Golo Kante, Jorginho and Pedro. Willian featured in the match and was totally impressed by the attacking style of play under Sarri.
"We wanted to start like that. I think we played very well, we had control of the game, we had possession," Willian added. "We always tried to be in control. We played a great game at Huddersfield. We are just in the beginning. We know we have to improve.
"Jorginho has played very well, he has a lot of quality and helps our play build up from the back. I think we played very well. Now we have to continue like that because next week we have a great game to play against Arsenal and we want to win again.”
When asked if he was having fun under Sarri, who prefers attacking football, Willian said, "I think so. We have a lot of players with quality up front, players like Eden Hazard and Pedro. Players like that want to play football. That's why Sarri talked about 'fun' football because he wants to build from the back. This is what we will try to do this season.
"This is what we do in Brazil and are trying to do here, playing with skill and movement and the manager told us to do that."
Chelsea will next face Arsenal, whom they have not defeated in their last six encounters, in the London derby. Willian believes the change in the style of play will definitely create problems for their London rivals.
"Now we have a different profile of football, a different way to play football," he said. "The manager tells us to play, to enjoy ourselves on the pitch – with responsibility. Now I think we have a different style to play that's why we can create problems for Arsenal."