As he said himself after the match, in Tuesday’s game against Barcelona Estêvão experienced the best moment of his professional career. The Brazilian scored a goal and clearly won the “battle of the 18-year-olds” against Lamine Yamal, who in the end was mocked through comparisons with the Chelsea player. Chelsea signed him from Palmeiras in 2024 for 45 million euros, with an additional 20 million euros included in the form of bonuses dependent on variables. The club then had to wait a year for him to arrive in Europe.

Estêvão, already in England this season—because until the end of the Club World Cup the attacker was representing Palmeiras—has so far recorded 5 goals and 1 assist in 17 appearances for the club. Added to this are 5 goals for the senior national team, in which he has collected 11 appearances over the last year. In the Real Madrid environment, especially among the fanbase, the question is being asked: why didn’t the Royal Club sign him?

It should be emphasized that the agreement was reached in 2024, a year before the Brazilian’s arrival in Europe, when Real Madrid were marching toward the European Cup with Jude Bellingham and had finalized the signing of Kylian Mbappé. And the Brazilian himself, after signing with Chelsea, revealed that the club had guaranteed him regular playing time and opportunities to play in his preferred positions. On Chiringuito they added to this context some significant words from the attacker from October 2023, when he told Mundo Deportivo:

What would be the biggest dream for you to fulfill?
My biggest dream since childhood is to play for Barcelona. It is one of the biggest teams in the world. I was born watching Barcelona with Neymar, Messi and Suárez. This is the dream I have.

So far you have always played on the right side of the attack. That position at Barcelona is currently occupied by the 16-year-old Lamine Yamal, who, like you, is very young. I don’t know if you’ve had the chance to watch him? Do you think you could play in the same team?
Yes, of course I’ve watched him. He is a very talented young player, I’ve seen many of his videos. Who knows, maybe in the future we could form a duo together [smile].