Brazilian flew back after hearing news during stopover in Canada and
will miss Chelsea's weekend clash with Leicester. Willian took to social
media, where he wrote a heartfelt poem in his native Portuguese,
praising her and expressing how much he will miss her. The post received
over 90,000 likes in just seven hours with fans sending tributes and
messages of condolence in their thousands. Willian’s former club
Corinthians tweeted the player their condolences.
Dona Zeze died of cancer in hospital after a two-year battle.
Willian scored Brazil’s second goal in their 2-0 victory against
Venezuela and was clearly emotional. After scoring, he said: “I am very
happy with the goal. “I also scored against Venezuela in the home match.
Today, I was happy to score here. “The goal today is for my mother, who
is in hospital, for my wife, for my daughters and for all the families
who cheers for me.”
Dona Zeze battled the debilitating disease for over two years and
underwent five operations. Willian was in Canada, on a stopover flight
back to London, when he received the news. The 28-year-old immediately
returned to Brazil. Just a month ago, Willian had posted an picture on
Instagram of himself at his mother’s bedside.
