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Chelsea recorded a monumental win over Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday night, with Estevao one of the shining lights for the Blues during the match.
Chelsea sent out a statement of intent on Tuesday night, putting the rest of Europe on alert as they thrashed Barcelona 3-0 at Stamford Bridge. The Blues went into the clash with two wins from their opening four Champions League ties, as a top-eight finish was brought into view.
Welcoming the Spanish giants was always going to be a challenge, given the quality of their squad. That was on display early on, as Ferran Torres went through on goal, but fluffed his lines as he put the shot wide of the post, stunning everyone at the stadium.
Then Chelsea pounced, as a clever corner routine ended in a Jules Kounde own-goal, just before Barcelona were reduced to 10 players as Ronald Araujo picked up a second booking before half-time. Enzo Maresca's side continued to pile on the pressure, as Estevao's excellent solo effort doubled their lead.
That was then built upon further, as Pedro Neto found space beyond the Barca backline, cutting it across to Liam Delap for a simple finish. Three goals, three points, and one clear message to the rest of Europe that Chelsea have arrived summed up a positive night for the Blues.
Among those to stand out was Estevao, who showed the sort of footwork and trickery that many legendary players at Stamford Bridge had to get fans off their seats. With another impressive display, the Brazilian youngster has come in for plenty of praise, including a comparison from Thierry Henry.
Speaking on CBS Sports, the former Arsenal man said on Estevao: "You wouldn't like to play against him. I'm not saying that you wouldn't be able to stop him, but he's coming at you all the time.
"He's reminding me of, I know it's early doors, but that's why I think Ryan Giggs was one of the best because he was coming at you all game. Whether he's having a good game or not a good game, he's trying to test you all the time and see if you're going to stop him or not. That's how it is as a winger.”
It's high praise for the youngster, who is settling in well to life in the Premier League and Champions League so far. The 18-year-old officially joined from Palmeiras in the summer in a deal worth £29million, which will be seen as a bargain if he can continue his current form.
In just 17 appearances so far, Estevao has five goals and one assist, while he is being eased into the team by Maresca. If he can get anywhere close to the kind of career Giggs had, then it will be an overwhelmingly positive endeavour - the Welshman made over 900 appearances for Manchester United, with 168 goals and 270 assists.
Maresca was asked after the game about how he has protected Estevao, and whether it's tougher to hold him back when he performs as he has. The Chelsea boss responded: "No, to be honest. Because if he doesn't play, Pedro Neto plays wide in his position. And Pedro is good. And we are happy with Pedro.
"We try just to defend the game plan, we use 11 players. Tonight, we decided, probably in the most difficult game of the season, we decided to play with Estevao. So I'm not a manager that I don't allow players to play minutes. It's just the game plan. The game plan always decides the first XI.
"It's the reason why we changed so much. And you say that we are unpredictable. But it's the game plan. The game plan defines the first 11. Now the next one is Arsenal.
"The game plan is not always good, sometimes it's also wrong. It defines the first XI. And Estevao, when the game plan is for him, he's going to play. And for sure he's going to play many games because he's very good."
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