Spurs star now claims former Arsenal flop was better than Gareth Bale

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In an astonishing claim, Spurs star Dejan Kulusevski has claimed former Arsenal flop Willian was a better Premier League winger than Gareth Bale.

Bale was incredible for Tottenham before leaving for Real Madrid in 2013 to win major trophies, whilst Willian enjoyed a fairly productive few years at Chelsea before a disastrous season at Arsenal in 2020-21.

The Brazilian was arguably the worst signing Mikel Arteta has made in his entire managerial tenure, as he arrived on a free transfer with high expectations but failed to contribute anything of note before agreeing to terminate his contract after just one year.

Kulusevski ranks Willian above Bale

The Spurs attacker was asked by TNT Sports to rank who he thought the Premier League’s best-ever wingers were, and he named Bale in fifth place, with Willian above him in fourth.

Arsenal legend Robert Pires did not even make the list, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Mohamed Salah behind Eden Hazard in Kulusevski’s eyes.

“He’s an unbelievable player, very underrated – so it’s very good to watch him,” Kulusevski stated of Willian.

Whilst Kulusevski is clearly referring to Willian’s spell at Chelsea, which saw him win two Premier League titles, this claim is still surprising given that Bale at his best was arguably levels ahead of Willian in pure ability.

Willian’s Arsenal disaster

The Brazil international made 37 appearances across all competitions as Arsenal finished in eighth place, and scored just one goal, which came towards the end of the campaign.

He arrived as an experienced option on a free transfer who could inject some firepower into Arsenal’s attack, but he did anything but. The fact he is now thriving with Fulham raises even more questions about his lack of commitment in an Arsenal shirt.

Mikel Arteta caused anger amongst supporters with Willian, as the winger was continually starting despite his poor performances and Arsenal’s dreadful results, and he also limited game time for the likes of Nicolas Pepe, Reiss Nelson and Bukayo Saka on the wings.

Most of Arteta’s transfers have had a positive impact at the club, but Willian’s arrival was nothing short of a complete disaster for everyone involved.