Estevao to Chelsea in the balance! Romano reveals what transfer hinges on

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 9 May 2024 09:43 BST
• 4 min read

Chelsea are chasing wildly talented teenager Estevao Willian from Palmeiras, but Fabrizio Romano has revealed that to secure the 17-year-old wonderkid, the Blues will have to overcome one major hurdle.

Estevao is closing in on a move to the Stamford Bridge side, who are seeking to repeat the type of transfer they struck for Kendry Paez last year.

Although a deal appears to be progressing smoothly, Romano has warned that there are potential complications ahead.

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Chelsea will have to agree on a deal with Palmeiras, who want to maximise the revenue they earn from their young gem. The Brazilian side have experience of doing just this, having struck a €60 million deal with Real Madrid to send Endrick to Spain in the summer.

Romano has outlined where the deal stands currently.

“Chelsea have reached an agreement with Willian Estevao and his agents on the contract,” Romano told the Daily Briefing.

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“Everything is ready between Chelsea and the player, and now the Blues want to close the deal with Palmeiras.

“The interest has been there for a long time, with concrete contacts starting a few months ago, and now they’re making progress on signing this exciting young talent, considered one of the best prospects in the world, not just South America.

“Conversations are ongoing between Chelsea and Palmeiras, and my understanding as we wait for an official bid is that Chelsea’s first proposal will be around €32m plus add-ons.

“What I’m hearing is that the structure of the add-ons would take the bid over the value of Estevao’s release clause.

“It could be €32m now and a further €25m over multiple payments - not guaranteed money, but depending on performances they could pay that over the course of multiple years.”

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What is Estevao’s release clause?

Estevao Willian’s release clause is set at €45m.

Chelsea do not wish to pay this sum immediately and are instead seeking to balance their risk by offering a lower initial fee with healthy bonuses that could be sufficient to tempt Palmeiras into agreeing a deal.

The incentive for the Brazilian side is that they could ultimately earn more for their latest jewel if he reaches his potential with the Premier League club.