Chelsea new signing 'best Brazilian player since Neymar'

Jacque Talbot

• 20 Jun 2024 08:15 CDT
• 3 min read

World Cup winner Branco believes that new Chelsea signing Estevao Willian is the best Brazilian born player since Neymar.

The Brazilian spoke highly of the Blues’ latest edition to the club after agreeing to a deal with Palmeiras which will seem them reportedly pay an initial £29m with add-ons making it up to £54m.

Chelsea are increasingly targeting the South American market under the ownership of Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital. The side have already signed Kendy Paez, Andrey Santos, Angelo Gabriel and Deivid Washington from the location and appear to be continuing this.

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The 17-year-old, who completed his medical in Brazil last Friday, is set to join Chelsea now, pending an official announcement.

Chelsea ensured that they sealed a deal for Estevao having missed out on the signing of his team-mate Endrick, who signed for Real Madrid.

The youngster has been nicknamed “Messinho”, but he still has so much developing to do.

However, Branco. a former World Cup winner with Brazil and official youth co-ordinator of Brazilian football. believes Estevao is the best Brazilian born player since Neymar.

“Estevao, for me, with all due respect to the others. This is something serious, that I’ve never said & I’m going to say,” he told reporters.

“Since Neymar, he is the best Brazilian-born player I’ve seen.

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“It’s my opinion, you’ve seen him close, you know.

“This is Brazil, they’re all spectacular, but this boy, his ceiling is a bit higher.”

Estevao joined Cruzeiro's youth academy in 2017. His talent was evident early on, leading to a sponsorship deal with Nike the following year when he was just 10. It was at Cruzeiro that he earned the nickname 'Messinho', a nod to his playing style's resemblance to his idol, Lionel Messi.

Despite the heightened expectations, Estevao continued to excel in Cruzeiro's academy, which led to his move to Palmeiras in 2021. At Palmeiras, he thrived in the youth teams, notably winning the Campeonato Brasileiro Sub-17.