Willian: Arteta convinced me to join Arsenal and win trophies

Willian has said he joined Arsenal after being convinced by Mikel Arteta’s plans to win silverware.

With offers coming from a host of clubs, Willian has revealed why he chose to join Arsenal.

The 32-year-old becomes the Gunners’ first summer signing after he was unveiled by the club on Friday morning.

Prior to his move to Arsenal, it was reported that Willian had up to five offers waiting for him on the table.

His agent, Kia Joorabchian, confirmed a host of big clubs including Beckham’s Inter Miami showed interest in the Brazilian forward.

Speaking after joining the club, Willian says it was Arteta’s vision of winning trophies at Arsenal that convinced him the most.

💬 "They have a new project with Mikel Arteta. I think this club deserves to shine again and I want to be a part of this project – to be a part of the Arsenal family is amazing."

📺 Watch @WillianBorges88's first interview as an Arsenal player 👇
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) August 14, 2020

“I like the way they play, everything is amazing – the stadium, and I think that with Arteta, Arsenal have a great opportunity to fight again for titles in the Premier League and in Europe so I’m very happy because of that,” Willian told Arsenal Digital.

“I’m excited to start. I can’t wait to go on the pitch and do my thing to help my team-mates and to help this club to shine again. That’s what I want.

“When I talked to Mikel, the conversation was good, he gave me confidence to come to Arsenal. He said a lot of good things to me and that’s why I have come to Arsenal.”

Willian played on the right flank for Chelsea in his seven-year stay at the club. However, some reports have claimed Mikel Arteta could use the Brazilian in a more central attacking role.

The 32-year-old isn’t bothered about where he is deployed and is happy to play wherever the manager sees fit.

“Haha, that’s a difficult question – I don’t know! I leave that to Arteta,” he said. “I come to help in every position.

“I can play on the right, I can play in the middle, I can play on the left side as well. So I want to help – in any position where they put me to play, I will try to do my best.”

Willian is already tipped to make a ‘Van Dijk’ esque impact at Arsenal.