Joe Cole picked out Estevao for special praise after Chelsea’s rampant 5-1 victory over West Ham, likening the youngster to Brazilian icon Neymar.
Estevao had been expecting to start amongst the substitutes at the London Stadium, just as he had done in Chelsea’s goalless draw with Crystal Palace previously.
But Cole Palmer’s late withdrawal, just moments before kick-off, thrust Estevao into the limelight for what was the 18-year-old’s full Premier League debut.
The former Palmeiras starlet – who has already been capped five times by Brazil – got off to a shaky start as it was his mistake which led to Lucas Paqueta’s thunderous 30-yard opener in east London.
But the teenager showed his inner strength and spirit across an eye-catching display for the remainder of his time on the field, before he was replaced by Jamie Gittens.
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After Joao Pedro and Pedro Neto put Chelsea in front following Paqueta’s wonder strike, it was Estevao’s scything run and cross for Enzo Fernandez which helped increase the deficit in the capital in the 34th minute.
The pinpoint cut-back saw Estevao become the youngest player in Premier League history to assist a goal for Chelsea – and the joy was plain to see on the Brazilian’s face as he wheeled away to celebrate with his team-mates.
A pair of quickfire goals from Moises Caicedo and Trevoh Chalobah put Chelsea further out of sight in the second half and Enzo Maresca’s men held firm to secure their first win of the campaign.
On Estevao’s last-minute call-up for the injured Palmer, ex-Chelsea winger Cole told Premier League Productions: ‘It’s difficult, particularly when you’re a young man coming in.
‘He affects the game. He’s not the finished article, he’s a baby, he’s 18, but he’s direct and he’s fearless.
‘Do you know what he does so well? Those extra touches. You watch the great Brazilians that we’ve seen… he gives me Neymar vibes.
‘He takes those extra touches where it’s just a little touch from the outside of his boot, he drives and he makes times for himself. He’s a joy to watch.’
Cole is confident Chelsea have got their hands on a serious talent who has the skill and flair to get fans’ ‘backsides off their seats’.
‘Football fans know what they like and they knew they loved this kid from the first time they met him,’ he added.
‘You can sense the excitement when you go to Stamford Bridge because they’ve got a player that they’re looking forward to watching, who is going to get their backsides off the seats.’
While Maresca was delighted with the way in which Estevao stepped up and shone on the big stage, he encouraged the teen to learn from his error which led to Paqueta’s early strike.
‘We conceded the goal because of him. He lost the goal in the build-up so he needs to make mistakes to learn,’ the Chelsea head coach told reporters at his post-match press conference.
‘But overall, his performance was very good.’
On Estevao’s reaction to the mistake, Maresca added: ‘That shows how good he is and it’s the reason why he’s here with us.’
According to Maresca, Jamie Gittens, Jorrel Hato and Estevao are all yet to fully ‘adapt’ to the rigours of Premier League football.
‘Joao Pedro, Liam [Delap], Estevao, Jamie Gittens are all fantastic players,’ the Italian added.
‘You can see that Liam and probably Joao are a little bit more ahead of the rest, but the reason why is that they were already here in England.
‘Jamie needs to adapt a little bit, Estevao needs to adapt, Hato, as well, needs time to adapt. But overall, we are very happy with all of them.’
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