Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca shares what he just said to Estevao Willian during their first conversation
Enzo Maresca can now look forward to having Estevao Willian in his team after his Chelsea side struggled to deal with the Palmeiras rising star.
Chelsea edged out Palmeiras by a 2-1 scoreline on Saturday in the Club World Cup quarter-finals.
Estevao Willian, 18, will officially join the Blues this summer and become part of Enzo Maresca’s squad. However, he lined up against them for Palmeiras this week, delivering a glimpse into the future with an extremely eye-catching performance.
Brazilian attacker Estevao fired in a right-footed equaliser to cancel out Cole Palmer’s opener in the Club World Cup, but Giay Agustin’s own goal eventually decided the knockout tie.
Estevao embraced several Chelsea players on the pitch after playing against them. He’ll now watch them try to win the competition before joining up with the squad ahead of the 2025/26 season.
Enzo Maresca shares detail of first chat with Estevao Willian
Maresca explained that he spoke with Estevao for the very first time straight after Chelsea’s win against Palmeiras.
During his post-match press conference, Maresca said via Football.London: “Estevao, I spoke with him for the first time after the game. I told him that it’s been the perfect night because we won, he scored. So it’s been perfect for us and for him.”
When asked if Estevao is ready for the physicality of Premier League, Maresca added: “Yes. Very good, very good. You can see that he’s a huge talent. You can see that he’s a fantastic player. And the only thing for me is when you come from South America or in general from the other part of the world, Europe, you need to adapt. So, we’re going to help him to adapt.
“First of all, to be happy, to continue to enjoy football. And we don’t have any doubt because he’s so good that he’s going to be a very important player for Chelsea.”
Estevao certainly put down a marker to English audiences with his weekend performance. Now excitement at Chelsea builds around his imminent arrival, which should inject even more quality into their forward line.
The Brazil international is a huge threat from either a No.10 or right-wing position, and that versatility should be useful when trying to break into Maresca’s XI.
While reports suggest that Estevao has his eyes set on Chelsea’s No.10 role, we doubt it’ll be that easy when he’s competing with Palmer. Instead, we wouldn’t be surprised to see the bulk of his minutes during his first year in West London come on the wings.
Estevao Willian joins Chelsea as a serious goal threat
Even though he only turned 18 in April, Estevao has proven in the Palmeiras first team he’s a great forward option. He leaves the Brazilian club with 27 goals and 15 assists in 83 senior appearances.
Against Chelsea, the teenager scored a stunning goal with a powerful finish, even if there are question marks about Robert Sanchez’s positioning.
| Minutes played | Goals | Total shots | Accurate passes | Accurate crosses | Touches in opposition box | Tackles won | Was fouled | Match rating |
| 90 | 1 | 2 | 13/18 (72%) | 1/4 (25%) | 8 | 2/2 (100%) | 1 | 7.0 |
The easiest route into Chelsea’s XI in the attacking areas is to score freely, as they are crying out for more goals to help ease the burden on Palmer. Time will tell if Estevao can be a solution for the Blues next season.
Estevao has been ranked as the world’s second-best youngster behind Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal, and there’s not long to go until he will be in Chelsea colours for the first time.
from Latest Chelsea News and Updates - The Chelsea Chronicle https://ift.tt/F0ZphK1
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