Willian is the ultimate luxury squad player for club and country – but is that enough for him?

On Saturday, Willian played in his 50th consecutive Premier League game. No one else has a longer active record. He celebrated in style, too, helping Chelsea to a 4-0 win over Brighton with a goal-of-the-season contender.

Yet that milestone is probably a bit misleading: only 21 of those 50 appearances have been starts and while Antonio Conte clearly likes having him around, it is also obvious that, when push comes to shove, Willian does not feature in his first-choice XI.

That the Brazilian accepts the situation with good grace – and seems able to turn it on whether he starts or climbs off the bench – makes him a superb squad player. And the situation is repeated at international level, too.

The question I address in my latest Unibet blog is whether that is enough for a player of such obvious ability.