Willian believes Arsenal will pay the price for selling Alexis Sanchez to Manchester United in the EFL Cup semi-final tonight.
Sanchez completed a move to Old Trafford on Monday, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who is cup-tied, going in the opposite direction.
Willian feels Arsenal will be weaker without the forward and says it is as big a blow to Arsene Wenger’s side as Chelsea being without Eden Hazard.
He told Standard Sport: “To lose this kind of player is not easy. It would be like losing Eden here - he is a great player. Is he that important to them? Of course. No one wants to lose this kind of player. They are two great players but [unlike Sanchez] Eden is still here.
“Great players have quality to play in matches like this. Arsenal have other players but Sanchez is special.”
The two sides go into the second leg at Emirates Stadium tonight with the tie still in the balance following a 0-0 draw at Stamford Bridge a fortnight ago.
Both Willian and Hazard are full of confidence after scoring three goals between them in Chelsea’s 4-0 victory over Brighton on Saturday.
Coach Antonio Conte is expected to start the duo in a 3-4-3 formation, with Hazard as a ‘false nine’.
And Willian says they are both in the kind of form to provide the magic that will ensure Chelsea progress.
He added: “I hope we can do something special to win. We have quality players who can do something different. Everyone has to be ready.
“My goal against Brighton was beautiful and it was one more clean sheet for us. We scored four goals, which came after a few games where we haven’t scored as much. It was important for us to do that before facing Arsenal.
“It’s not just the Chelsea fans who don’t like losing to Arsenal. We, the Chelsea players, don’t like losing to Arsenal either. We are going into this game very strong.”
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Chelsea have won only one of their last seven competitive matches against Wenger’s men, who beat them in May’s FA Cup Final to deny them the Double.
“This is another big game, another part of our history against them,” Willian said. “It is always difficult to lose a final like we did in the FA Cup.”
Chelsea also struggled to create chances at home a couple of weeks ago, when Arsenal sat back and looked to defend.
In Pictures | Chelsea vs Arsenal | EFL Cup semi-final
While the Brazil international concedes Arsenal might prove tougher to beat, he says Chelsea cannot play negatively either.
“We have to play like we did against Brighton. It doesn’t matter who we are playing against, we have to play our football and look to score, to be in control from the back. We have to be ready for anything and be ready to play.”