“When I signed for Chelsea, the next day I scored a goal and celebrated like Palmer. His celebration was trend, very popular,” says Estêvão before discussing his first interaction with the England forward. “We talked on social media, I tagged him on Instagram, he called me a star, I said he’s a star too. He said we’re going to do a lot of great things together for Chelsea.”
Chelsea fans will be watering at the mouth at the prospect of seeing a Palmer and Estevao connection, but I do think we will need to remember that Estevao is still only 17-years-old and we will need to afford some patience and not pile on too many expectations. Although he certainly has some expectations of his own, and he clearly backs himself.
In fact, he has that Cole Palmer confidence about him, the thing that I actually believe makes Palmer SO good and makes him stand out, as well as his obvious natural ability and quality.
Estevao is cut from the same mentality cloth.
For many years, Estêvão has been dubbed Messinho: “Little Messi”. It is a label and comparison that bothers the Brazilian but he admits the Argentinian is his great inspiration. “I like Neymar a lot too, Cristiano Ronaldo. But my reference is [Lionel] Messi for everything he’s done for football,” Estêvão says. “The way he plays and what he does off the pitch is a guy I always have to look up to. And, of course, for me being left-footed like him favours as well.
“Some people are born with talent, others have to work hard. Good examples are Messi and Ronaldo. Messi has the talent, Ronaldo the effort. I look for both. Talent and dedication. Today in football you have to dedicate yourself, you have to keep to a schedule, train, travel, take care of yourself. You have to give up a lot. Without dedication you can’t get anywhere.”
Not only does he back himself, but he has been bought up well and oozes maturity on and off the pitch. He speaks like an experienced pro.
Does he worry, however, that he will not prove a success at Stamford Bridge, as was the case for Kevin De Bruyne, Mohamed Salah and Romelu Lukaku? “That doesn’t worry me because each one is different,” he says. “I don’t know the context or what they were like. I’m going to have to find my space and I’m going to have to give my all effort every day.”
Estêvão is still so young but having achieved so much already he has a clear mind with regards to his future, not to mention big ambitions. “I want to win titles and show all my potential, show everything I can do,” he says. “Champion of the World Cup, Premier League and Champions League. That’s what I want.
“My biggest dream is to be the best player in the world. That’s my dream. One day I’ll be among the best. But I’m not going to promise or project that I’ll achieve this in a few years. It’ll come naturally.”
The world is his oyster, and we are lucky that he decided to join Chelsea.
Coveted by many big clubs in European football, Estêvão opted for Chelsea and is looking forward to joining them ahead of next season. “I decided for Chelsea because of their planning. I was very pleased with that,” he says. “Not just for me, but also for my family. It was the club that believed in me and trusted in my work. I hope I can pay that back.”
I truly believe that having this kind of mentality and belief in your own ability can really make you stand out or elevate you as a player, just as it has with Palmer. I see the same kind of belief in ability in the pair of them.
Confidence in football can be a huge thing alongside the talent that matches it. The way Estevao is playing and acting off the pitch puts him well ahead of his current age.
Chelsea have signed a gem here there is no doubt about it, but we will need to afford him the time he needs to settle in London and in the Premier League. Because despite his confidence and belief, these are going to be huge changes and steps for him and at such a young age. There is so much hype already building, but I have no doubts at all that he will be able to handle it and in fact, probably thrive on it by the sounds of it!
