Making history in Brazil, being called a ‘genius’ by Neymar and being given a nickname inspired by Messi: who is 17-year-old Estevao Willian, who is moving to Chelsea?

Brazil has long been seen as a breeding ground for the greatest talents in football. And the conveyor belt that is Brazil’s talent factory has also produced the next top star.

The latest star to roll off the production line in South America is Estevao Willian, who will be looking to showcase his talents in the Premier League next season after joining Chelsea in June for an initial fee of £28million.

Just 17, Estevao has already caused a stir in Brazil after wowing fans with a series of spectacular performances in his first season at Palmeiras. He is also known as ‘Messinho’, which means ‘Little Messi’, but he is not a fan of the nickname.

Europe’s biggest clubs were queuing up to secure the Brazilian wonderkid’s signature last summer, with Barcelona, ​​Manchester City and Paris-Saint Germain all vying for the star.

However, the lure of Chelsea proved too great and the winger decided to forgo many of the top clubs in football to move to Stamford Bridge in 2025, when he turns 18.

Estevao Willian is Brazil’s next big superstar after shining for Palmeiras at the age of 17

Estevao joins Chelsea and will play under head coach Enzo Maresca from next season

The tricky winger is nicknamed ‘Messinho’, which means ‘Little Messi’ in English, because of his skills

Estevao’s journey began in the countryside of Sao Paulo. Born in Franca in April 2007, it wasn’t long before the tricky winger’s talents were plucked away from his home state.

He was only 10 years old when he was picked up by Cruzeiro, a club from Belo Horizonte. Cruzeiro reportedly offered up to 10 times more money than his current club Palmeiras to sign the winger.

At the same age, he made history. Estevao became the youngest Brazilian in history to sign a deal with the major sports brand Nike, surpassing Rodrygo and Neymar Jr., who signed at 11 and 13 years old respectively.

Overnight, he was catapulted to global stardom. Media outlets in Brazil and around the world picked up on his story, and fans took notice. Comparisons with Neymar – who called him a “genius” – then began because of his mesmerizing dribbling ability.

With Estevao’s newfound popularity came a lot of pressure, which has caused many young stars to fail in the past. But not this one. His hype only grew when he moved to Palmeiras in 2021.

He broke into the senior line-up during the 2023-24 season, but it is this campaign that the rising star has really shown what he is made of. Estevao has scored nine goals and provided seven assists in all competitions in 22 appearances this calendar year.

His total of 16 goals equals that of Neymar at the same age. The former Barcelona and PSG star scored 10 goals and provided 6 assists while playing for Santos in 2009.

Estevao joined Palmeiras at the age of 14 and had success with the youth teams

The now 17-year-old’s record of 16 goals in 2024 equals that of Neymar at the same age

Estevao’s achievements have been attributed to his natural talent and mental strength, and his impact at Palmerias has left even coach Abel Ferreira – a man of few words – in disbelief.

Ferreira said in March: ‘He is different from anything I have ever seen in football. He knows how to attack, defend, play the game, dribble.

‘He is focused, he has a good family, everyone at the club cares about him and the older players talk to him a lot.’

Estevao’s family have continued to follow the youngster closely, monitoring his every move as the Brazilian winger’s career takes off.

When he signed for Cruzeiro at the age of 10, his father, mother and sister packed their bags and moved 280 miles from Franca to Belo Horizonte. They will do the same when the winger moves to London next summer.

Estevao’s father is a pastor at the church and has always been there for him during his development, taking him to every training session and watching him from the stands every week when he came onto the field.

Estevao is seen as a modest person, but his humility is attributed to his father by Antonio Augusto de Araujo, the coach of his father’s school team in Belo Horizonte.

Estevao’s family has supported him throughout his career and has been praised for his humility

The winger’s popularity has skyrocketed over the past year, with him amassing almost two million followers on Instagram

“His father took good care of him and knew what he was dealing with,” Augusto told The Athletic. “(He) was the one who took more charge, corrected Estevao more and kept everything under control more.”

Brazil has seen many talents rise to stardom over the years, but the hype has never been greater than it is now for Estevao. The feeling in South America is that he could follow in the footsteps of Pele, Zico and Ronaldinho as one of the greats.

“Estevao is the best player Brazilian football has produced since Neymar,” Palmeiras academy director Joao Paulo Sampaio told BBC Sport. “When you watch him, you fall in love.

‘He is already impressive with his technique, but like Neymar at this point in his career, he is not physically mature and not as strong as Endrick, so he can still develop a lot. That is what surprises everyone and makes them think that he will reach a much higher level.’

At the time of writing, the youngster has 1.7 million followers on Instagram. He has amassed over a million fans since signing for Chelsea in June, and his popularity is skyrocketing by the day.

His growing popularity has been compared to that of former team-mate Endrick, whose value grew in a similar manner when he was signed by Real Madrid at the age of 16, before finally completing the move this summer.

Estevao follows former teammate Endrick (right) to Europe after his move to Real Madrid

The 17-year-old has made his debut for the Brazilian senior team against Ecuador

Like Endrick, Estevao has already made his national team debut, coming on as a 61st-minute substitute against Ecuador in the last international break and also coming on as a substitute in a 1-0 loss to Paraguay.

It is no surprise that Estevao is already testing his qualities on the international stage; his qualities are comparable to those of many Brazilian superstars of the past.

Like Messi, he has a stout left foot, and like the Argentine and fellow Argentine Neymar, the young right winger doesn’t seem to mind the traffic on the pitch. He is known for his confidence on the ball and willingness to take on defences.

Estevao has excellent ball control, which allows him to play as an attacking midfielder at times, but his greatest asset is his great possession, aided by his speed, which comes in handy on the wing.

The control he has is incredible and his speed with the ball is astonishing, Sampaio told AS. ‘The Palmeiras photographer took a series of 100 photos of him running with the ball and in all of them he came out with the ball glued to his left foot.’

Estevao’s creative skills combined with his mature personality rightly have Chelsea fans excited to see him in blue next year.

Enzo Maresca has his hands full trying to shape his current Chelsea team into a top four contender, but he still finds time to keep an eye on the Blues’ future star man.

Estevao is known for his dribbling ability and he likes to attack defenders regularly

Estevao will compete with Noni Maudeke (left) and Pedro Neto (right) for Chelsea’s right wing position

After Chelsea’s 1-0 win at Bournemouth, Maresca said: ‘Yes, we are following him. He is doing fantastically – but unfortunately he is doing fantastically there and not with us.

“We’re waiting for him to arrive here next summer, but we’re very happy with the way he’s doing this anyway.”

Estevao is hoping to make Brazil’s squad for the 2026 World Cup, so his first season at Chelsea will be crucial.

Judging by his performances over the past year, Noni Madueke and Pedro Neto will have to remain alert if they want to continue getting playing time when Estevao arrives.