Chelsea vs Arsenal: Future Ballon d'Or winner Estevao

Estevao was in the news when Chelsea hosted Arsenal. The club's strategy was to turn him into a future Ballon d'Or contender alongside Lamine Yamal.

Estevao's Step Up

At 18, Estevao Willian has come a long way faster than the average youngster could ever dream of.

The boy who once caused a stir at Palmeiras, who was once called “Messinho” which he himself did not like, is now writing his own story at Chelsea.

Estevao is making strong progress with Chelsea. Photo: CFC

It was a journey of speed, skill, courage and moments that made Stamford Bridge feel like it was about to explode.

The first moment that marked that maturity came in early October, in the thrilling match between Chelsea and Liverpool.

The score was 1-1, the clock pointed to the 5th minute of injury time, got the ball and scored the decisive goal. The cheers at Stamford Bridge that day were recorded as an earthquake in the West London area .

A young player who had just arrived in the Premier League decided the outcome of one of the biggest matches in English football.

In addition to winning 3 points, that victory helped Enzo Maresca's young Chelsea mature, while also making Liverpool unable to recover and in crisis until now.

If the goal against Liverpool was a self-referential moment, it was his wonder strike in the 3-0 win over Barcelona in the Champions League that truly cemented Estevao into the ranks of global talent.

He sprinted to the right wing, passed two defenders with a series of flicks and footwork, before swinging his left foot and firing a shot into the top corner – with almost no angle left in the tight angle.

It was not a goal by a promising youngster, but a performance by a future star. Although Marc Cucurella was voted best player, Stamford Bridge had only one name to mention: Estevao.

That night, Lamine Yamal – who is still considered the biggest star of the new generation – was completely out of the spotlight.

What makes Estevao special is not just his technique or vision. He has shown a rare character for a teenager. He does not like the nickname “Messinho”, he does not want to be a copy of anyone. He said clearly: “I do not want to live in the shadow of a legend. I am Estevao” .

Compete for the future Golden Ball

After making his mark with Palmeiras at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, Estevao found the ideal environment to develop himself.

Chelsea is a team that is rebuilding but has a lot of potential, with coach Maresca always knowing how to protect and develop young players thanks to the influence of “Guardiolismo”, and a long-term plan built for Brazilian talent.

Estevao’s progress in the first half of the 2025/26 season has been almost exponential, transcending the image of a highly-anticipated talent to become a key tactical option.

Estevao continuously scores beautiful goals in big matches. Photo: CFC

The harsh English football environment makes many stars struggle to integrate , but Estevao is different.

He quickly developed his own dance, from mesmerizing dribbles – with the concept of “stop-motion” (waiting for opponents to win the ball and then exploiting the space to advance) – to beautiful goals.

In Estevao, in addition to his magical handling of the ball, he is very good at unexpected changes of direction, extremely fast acceleration. More importantly, he creates confidence. Confidence that Chelsea – after many years of uncertainty – has found a guiding star for the future.

Today (11:30 p.m. November 30), Chelsea entered the London derby with Arsenal in the context of the Premier League cheering for the home team.

An Arsenal win could make the title race monotonous. But Chelsea are different, they need to beat the “Gunners” to keep the season hot, prove that they are capable of entering the Premier League title race.

In that decisive match, all eyes turned to Estevao.

Against Liverpool, he was the one to finish the game. Against Barcelona, ​​he overshadowed Lamine Yamal and redefined his limits.

Now, Arsenal with a 16-match unbeaten streak in all competitions is the biggest challenge for Estevao as well as Chelsea.

Chelsea's team, family and management group run by Andre Cury (Neymar's former agent) are building a long-term strategy: turning Estevao from golden boy to future Ballon d'Or.

Beat Arsenal to have a successful season with Chelsea before leading Brazil to the 2026 World Cup, everything is possible with Estevao's talent.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/chelsea-dau-arsenal-qua-bong-vang-tuong-lai-estevao-2467950.html