Written by Han Bing Chelsea’s Brazilian winger Esteban holds the record as the youngest assist provider in the club’s Premier League history (18 years and 120 days), Ngoumoha, who scored a last-minute winner for Liverpool against Newcastle, is the club’s youngest goalscorer (16 years and 361 days), and Arsenal’s native winger Dawman has become the youngest player to earn a penalty in the Premier League (15 years and 235 days)…

The Premier League’s pricey foreign signings this summer have yet to deliver performances matching their fees, whereas the young prodigies have displayed a refreshing vitality and the promise of future stars.

Among the three, 18-year-old Esteban has been in the spotlight the longest and, with a total transfer fee of €61.5 million, naturally attracts more attention. Known as the "little Messi" in Brazil, Esteban has been fully supported by Chelsea’s club, coaches, and teammates since signing last year. This international route Premier League prodigy has declared he does not want to be Messi but aims to make his own name famous worldwide.

The "little Messi" shines in his debut

On August 4th, at Esteban’s unveiling ceremony with Chelsea, the Brazilian youngster already showed signs of a future star. After all, his aura is dazzling: Nike’s youngest sponsored footballer (10 years old), nine championship trophies across Brazilian youth levels, four best player awards in Brazil’s Serie A, the highest-valued player outside Europe (€50 million), Brazil’s fifth youngest international (17 years and 135 days), and at only 17 years old, he has already played 83 top-level matches in Brazil and South America, with an impressive record of 27 goals and 15 assists…

In the summer Club World Cup quarterfinals, Esteban demonstrated his skill with a stunning narrow-angle shot against his future club Chelsea. Although his team Palmeiras lost, Esteban earned the man of the match award, gaining full recognition from his new club. In his first friendly after joining Chelsea on August 8th, he scored by following up on a shot that hit the post. In the second friendly against AC Milan, Esteban won a penalty in the first half. Although he did not take the penalty himself, his involvement in consecutive goals proved his talent. On August 22nd, in the Premier League’s second round, Esteban assisted Enzo’s third goal in a 5-1 win over West Ham, becoming Chelsea’s youngest Premier League assist provider (18 years and 120 days). He was named man of the match in both the friendly against Leverkusen and the Premier League game against West Ham.

After joining Chelsea, Esteban has steadily improved. With Palmer injured and absent in the second Premier League round, Esteban seized the chance to start, becoming Chelsea’s youngest starter since Aké in May 2013 (18 years and 128 days). His dribbling skills impressed greatly, and he provided a direct assist, single-handedly invigorating Chelsea’s wing attack. After the match, coach Maresca specifically praised Esteban: “He lost possession while organizing an attack, which led to our conceded goal; he needs to learn and adapt through mistakes. But overall, his performance was excellent and not affected by the error, which proves his quality.” In the third round, Esteban started again, confirming the coach’s trust in him.

Esteban is a right winger with a strong left foot but can play any forward position. Skilled in dribbling, passing, and shooting, he models his technique after Messi and Neymar. His dribbling style is known as the "freeze move," where he waits for the opponent to react before making his move to dribble past and exploit space.

Steadily nurturing a new generation leader

Although Esteban’s debut was impressive, Chelsea is not rushing his development but has a comprehensive plan to nurture him without forcing progress. Since Esteban’s signing last June, this plan has been in action. Chelsea allowed him to continue developing for another year at Palmeiras, where he is familiar, while also receiving English lessons to help him integrate into the Premier League quickly after one year. During the Club World Cup in early July, Palmer whispered to Esteban, then still an opponent, but Esteban’s strong accent made it hard for his future teammates to understand. However, by his first interview with Chelsea TV after joining, Esteban’s English had improved enough to handle daily conversations.

Chelsea received many inquiries from clubs interested in loaning Esteban during the summer, but Maresca wanted to personally coach the Brazilian prodigy and firmly believed he would shine brightly. When choosing his jersey number, Esteban did not take the number 11 left by departing Madueke, which represents a starting winger. Instead, he picked 41, the same number he wore at Palmeiras, as a tribute to his former club and a sign of his humble, gradual approach. Only five players in Chelsea’s history have worn this large number, none making significant contributions. Of course, for Esteban, whom Chelsea is fully committed to developing, 41 is just a temporary number.

Esteban said he has received a lot of support since joining Chelsea: “Everyone has helped me a lot and given me confidence. I enjoy every minute and don’t rush to fit in quickly. Thanks to the coaches and teammates, my adaptation has been much faster than I expected.” Esteban not only gets support from current teammates but also consulted Chelsea veteran Thiago Silva while still in Brazil. Silva’s patient guidance strengthened Esteban’s resolve to join Chelsea. He hopes to surpass previous Brazilian stars at Chelsea: “I want to win every possible trophy for Chelsea, and personally, I aim to be the best in the world. I believe Chelsea’s advanced facilities, coaching, teammates’ help, and passionate fans will help me realize my dreams.”

Although his idols are Messi and Neymar, Esteban watches Eden Hazard’s performances the most. Chelsea legend Hasselbaink has already compared Esteban to Hazard, believing the Brazilian youngster can surpass Hazard and bring more success to Chelsea.