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Zola, Cole, Hazard - is Estevao of same ilk?

Zola, Cole, Hazard - is Estevao of same ilk?

BBC News5 days ago
This weekend I was at Stamford Bridge for Chelsea's friendlies against Bayer Leverkusen and AC Milan. This was the entirety of their pre-season, the best prep they could muster to get ready for the toughest league campaign on the planet.They played well and hit the ground running, though no one will be surprised if they run into a brick wall part way through the season. The medical boffins have never suggested this sort of summer is anything like the right kind of preparation, but that is the madness of the football calendar.There was a silver lining on these blazing hot sunny days. The Blues have a history of falling for small, talented creative players who the fans take to their hearts - they often reward them with player of the year trophies.Think of Joe Cole, Eden Hazard and Gianfranco Zola and you could even add Juan Mata and Charlie Cooke to the list. I mentioned this the other day on the TV commentary and a few folk were kind enough to suggest I should be on the list too. The fans certainly were kind to me, and I did get the Player of the Year a couple of times, but I would not presume to be in that group.The important point is that there could be a new kid on the block. The 18-year-old Brazilian Estevao Willian fits the bill. Chelsea fans are head over heels already and I feel the same, after only two friendlies.It is early days and there are dangers along the road, but Estevao has the skill, confidence, vision, personality, game awareness and the pace. I cannot wait to watch him develop, enjoy the skills and hopefully watch him become a legendary player at the club. I am sure fans of other clubs will enjoy watching him too, he could be that good.Sign up to read more from Pat Nevin in his Football Extra newsletterNot a Chelsea fan? Find and follow your club here
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‘This is big boy stuff' – Roy Keane clashes with Micah Richards on Sky Sports but fans distracted by Daniel Sturridge
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‘This is big boy stuff' – Roy Keane clashes with Micah Richards on Sky Sports but fans distracted by Daniel Sturridge
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The Sun

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  • The Sun

‘This is big boy stuff' – Roy Keane clashes with Micah Richards on Sky Sports but fans distracted by Daniel Sturridge

ROY KEANE clashed with Micah Richards following Manchester United's 1-0 defeat to Arsenal. But several fans found themselves distracted by Daniel Sturridge during the heated debate. 4 4 Keane, Richards and Sturridge made up the pundits panel for the first Super Sunday of the season. After the game, which was decided by Riccardo Calafiori 's scrappy 13th minute goal, Keane and Richards disagreed over Altay Bayindir 's role in the winner. Under pressure from William Saliba as Declan Rice swung in a corner, the United stopper failed to deal with the delivery, which was then prodded home by Calafiori. As Richards claimed that Bayindir had needed more protection, Keane fumed: "Micah, this is big boy stuff. "There's going to be mismatches. If they've got a lot more players bigger than you're leads, then you're going to be outmatched somewhere." As Richards continued to try and make his case, Keane snarled: "That's the goalkeeper, you can't babysit a goalkeeper." The former Manchester City star did relent a little bit, adding: "I agree with you that the goalkeeper should definitely do better. "But I also believe he should be protected a lot more." As the argument waged on, Sturridge sat between the two warring pundits. The former Liverpool striker looked relaxed, with on leg crossed over the other. At certain points, Sturridge looked like he may have even been suppressing a laugh. Noticing the ex-England star's stance, several fans joked on social media. One wrote: "Sturridge sat between those two going back and forth was killing me." While a second posted: "Sturridge in the middle of these two debating is so funny to watch! Would love be front row for that too. Roy annoyed is comedy." A third joked: "Sturridge sitting there wishing he had a big fat cigar." And another added: "Danny sturridge loves this Keane/ Richards argument." Bayindir found himself starting between the sticks, despite Andre Onana being fit again. Onana was also snubbed from the bench, with Tom Heaton preferred. Asked about the station, boss Ruben Amorim said: "We try to choose the best players for each game, so next week is a different life. "This week, we chose these players. No (he is not injured), he's recovered but the other guys did so well during pre-season, so I need to balance that." 4 4

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