Chelsea Transfer News: Willian Signing Not Enough to Put Blues over the Top

Brazilian winger Willian, Chelsea's latest summer signing, will provide the Blues with another dynamic attacking player. But in the end, he's not a big enough difference-maker to push the club over the top in 2013-14.

There's certainly a lot to like about the 25-year-old—who has picked up some key UEFA Champions League experience playing with Ukraine's Shakhtar Donetsk—but he lacks the presence and overall threat of a Wayne Rooney or many of the other top-flight strikers on the market.

Having scored just one goal in 15 appearances with Russian Premier League club Anzhi Makhachkala following his six-year run with Shakhtar, it goes without saying that Willian has struggled to find the back of the net consistently as of late.

A creative player who thrives on set pieces and free kicks, Willian brings another productive set-up man to Chelsea, but not the dangerous goal scorer the Blues desperately need. Rooney—a player who has been linked to Stamford Bridge and who can score 30-35 goals for a club in a given season when healthy and in top form—is the type of player Chelsea need in order to dethrone Manchester United in the Premier League and return to the Champions League final.

Keep in mind that Frank Lampard's 15 goals led all Blues players in the Premier League last season, and that's exactly why adding another midfielder makes very little sense for Jose Mourinho's squad.

Chelsea need finishers, players who can put away goals and make the Blues' defense count for something against Europe's best clubs.

Willian is a dynamic player, but he doesn't make sense at this point in time. Chelsea have enough playmakers in midfield already and should be focused on adding quality and depth in the final third instead.

The Blues finished with the second most goals in Premier League play a season ago, but they still churned out 11 fewer than league-leading Manchester United. The difference was the Red Devils' elite striker Robin van Persie, who led the league with 26 goals—11 more than Chelsea's leading scorer.

In 2011-12, Sergio Aguero netted 23 goals (third most behind van Persie and Rooney) for league champion Manchester City.

Dominant defense can power any club to a victory, but as United proved a season ago, an average defense is nearly impossible to beat when it comes with a high-powered offensive attack led by a dependable goal scorer.

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