Teenager Estevao shows promise in Palmer absence

Estevao Willian, a teenage sensation, came out to explain why Blues fans had been so excited about his arrival after Cole Palmer’s absence from the warm-up for Chelsea’s Premier League game at West Ham.

In his first Premier League start, the 18-year-old replaced England international Palmer who scored the hosts’ stunning sixth-minute opener with a flick.

The Brazilian forward showed why Chelsea were willing to pay £29 million for him to move to Stamford Bridge, most notably with his first-half assist for Enzo Fernandez, who helped the Fifa Club World Cup winners triumphantly cruise to a 5-1 victory.

At the age of 18, Fernandez’s smart run and pull-back for Estevao’s close-range goal made him the youngest Chelsea player to score a goal in the Premier League.

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca told BBC Sport, “He needs to adapt, he needs to learn how the Premier League differs from Brazil.

Despite being drawn to Chelsea by many of Europe’s top clubs, including Manchester City, Paris St. Germain, and Bayern Munich, Estevao chose Chelsea.

He quickly embraced the “wonderkid” stereotype and was predicted to achieve great things when he joined the Blues.

First impressions of Estevao in England were positive after he scored in the quarter-finals of the World Cup’s competition against former club Palmeiras, who had lost to Chelsea.

Although I believe he is young, Marc Cucurella, a Chelsea team-mate, said, “He showed that he is very mature.”

He made some very wise decisions, and all of the new signings and players came here to support the team by bringing something positive, positive energy, and good talent. I hope this season will be a success because we have an amazing squad.

Rob Green, a former England and Chelsea goalkeeper, continued that Estevao seemed like it was “just a joy to play and go out there and express yourself.”

He told Sky Sports, “He looked like he played where the shirt didn’t weigh anything and there was no expectation.”

“You play with a lot of international players and the different approaches they take to the game, going into the game, on the team bus,” said one player, “there’s a real freedom and a brilliant thing.”

Palmer, Chelsea’s brightest player, was lacking against West Ham, but they still did well.

A niggling groin issue and Maresca’s reveal that the 23-year-old has not been 100% for the past four or five days and has been ruled out of Friday’s game.

He continued, “He tried the warm-up, but he felt something.” We therefore prefer to avoid taking any risk, which will be determined in due course.

Maresca acknowledged that Palmer’s side is “much better” when he is available, but the Blues have shown that they can perform well without him.

He asserted, “No doubt, Cole is our best player when they say we are just a Cole team.” We are undoubtedly a much, much better team when we have Cole.

Cucurella also cited Estevao’s ability to bridge the “difficult” situation created by Palmer’s tardive withdrawal.

The Spanish left-back said, “It’s difficult because we practice one thing; at the end, we need to change very quickly.”