New Chelsea star Estevao Willian has chance to show Enzo Maresca what he can do

Daily Mirror

10 hours ago

Brazil teenager Estevao Willian will finally move to Chelsea this summer a year after agreeing a £29.1million move from Palmeiras and could face his new club tonight
Chelsea fans will get a glimpse of their new wonderkid at the Club World Cup – when he turns out for their quarter-final ­opponents. Brazil teenager Estevao Willian, 18, will finally move to Stamford Bridge this summer a year after agreeing a £29.1million move from Palmeiras.
The Sao Paolo club inserted a 'loan back' clause to keep him until after the Club World Cup and now football's hand of fate has inevitably pitted Palmeiras against Chlesea in the last eight.
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There is no agreement between the two sides to stop Estevao from playing and nothing in FIFA's rules either – so the Brazilian wonderkid is set to play against his new club in Philadelphia in the early hours of Saturday. Estevao admitted last week it was 'really hard' to focus and knowing he was moving to Chelsea meant facing them was 'not easy'.
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That has raised serious doubts about the state of mind of a player who made his debut for Brazil aged just 17, has already won five senior caps and is regarded as a generational talent in his home country. They see him as a better prospect than Real Madrid starlet Endrick, possibly the best young talent since Neymar.
No wonder Chelsea are delighted at seeing off competition from the world's top clubs to get him. Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-­Germain, Manchester City and ­ Arsenal all wanted to sign Estevao, who is left-footed and brilliantly skilful.
His dribbling and goals have drawn comparisons to Lionel Messi. Nike signed him to a ­professional contract when he was 10, making him the youngest Brazilian to sign with them. So you are probably ­wondering at this point why the excitement about his arrival has not been greater?
Maybe the problem is Chelsea have signed so many youngsters, so many Brazilians, and so many hot prospects that you almost lose count. But this one is truly special. 'This player is different from everything I've ever seen,' said Palmeiras coach Abel Ferreira.
Joao Paulo Sampaio, the head of Palmeiras' youth academy, told the BBC: 'Estevao is the best player to have emerged from Brazilian ­football since Neymar. You watch him and you fall in love.
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'He already impresses with his technique but, like Neymar at this same point in his career, he has not yet matured physically and is not as strong as Endrick, so he could still develop a lot. That's what amazes ­everyone and makes them think that he will reach a much higher level.'
Brazil boss Carlo Ancelotti, who gave Estevao his first start for the national team against Ecuador, said: 'He's got a special talent. He's got character, he's a good person and he's humble. He has the characteristics to be very important for the national team.'
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Estevao has helped Palmeiras win their group and beat Botafogo to reach the quarter-finals. But the Brazilian teenager has faced criticism for his performances in the tournament. There has been a strong suspicion in Brazil that Estevao has been ­distracted by his impending move to London and even chat in the Brazilian media that he may be dropped.
Ferreira said: 'It's normal for a kid who had a dream and is seeing that dream come true. If we all made an effort to put ourselves in his shoes, when he was 18 years old half a dozen days ago, you'd have more understanding. He's my daughter's age.'