“This player is different from anything I’ve ever seen,” the Palmeiras coach said at a press conference in early May, following a 2-1 win over Botafogo-SP in the Copa Brasil.
The two-time Libertadores champion is not particularly known for getting carried away too easily, especially in front of the cameras. But that night he allowed himself to speak freely because he couldn’t believe his eyes – 17-year-old Estevao Willian had just scored the winning goal in the final minutes and put on another spectacular show.
Such was the impact the left-footed winger had this season that Ferreira tried in vain to convince the club’s management not to sell him. But it was too late.
“Estevao is the best player to come out of Brazilian football since Neymar. You look at him and you fall in love,” Palmeiras academy head Joao Paulo Sampaio told BBC Sport.
“He already impresses with his technique but, like Neymar at this same point in his career, he has not yet matured physically and is not as strong as Endrik, so he could still develop a lot. That is what amazes everyone and makes them think to reach will a much higher level”.
Chelsea may have struck gold with their new signing.]