Estevao Willian scored his first Premier League goal for Chelsea as they beat Liverpool 2-1 at Stamford Bridge, prompting a one-word response from Manchester City striker, Erling Haaland
Erling Haaland labelled Estevao Willian a “wonderkid” after the Brazilian sensation stole the spotlight in Chelsea’s 2-1 win over Liverpool. The 18-year-old has wasted no time demonstrating his quality at Stamford Bridge after arriving this summer, following a £29million switch from Palmeiras.
Featuring in six of Chelsea’s seven Premier League matches this campaign, Estevao provided an assist in the Blues’ 5-1 demolition of West Ham in August. And he notched the maiden goal of his Premier League journey during Saturday’s encounter with Liverpool on home soil.
Moises Caicedo broke the deadlock for Chelsea on the 14-minute mark with a blistering effort past Giorgi Mamardashvili from the edge of the area. While Cody Gakpo drew level in the second-half, converting a knock-on from Alexander Isak from close-range to offer Arne Slot’s outfit a ray of hope, Estevao had different ideas for the encounter.
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Marc Cucurella rolled the ball across the penalty area to find the teenager at the far post, who had got goal-side of Andy Robertson to secure all three points for the hosts. And Manchester City frontman Haaland was swift to share his admiration for Estevao following his heroic showing, posting to his Snapchat stories with a photograph of the winger celebrating wildly.
Adding a caption to the post, he simply penned: “Wonderkid.” While Estevao originally put pen to paper with Chelsea last summer, age restrictions meant he had to stay at Palmeiras until reaching 18.
And despite City, along with the likes of Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain also expressing interest in snapping him up, it was Chelsea who eventually triumphed in the battle for his signature. As Enzo Maresca was dismissed for his touchline behaviour against Liverpool, he was unable to heap praise on Estevao publicly following the final whistle.
However, assistant coach Willy Caballero wasted absolutely no time in making his views crystal clear about the wonderkid. He said: “We know that a young player can suffer when he moves from another country to settle down here and to play for this club.
“So the players, first of all, are doing a great job to involve all the new players. And when we have the chance, we work.
“I can speak with him most of the time in Spanish because he understands. And he’s a really good kid. And we are so happy for him because he needs it, we need it, and he needs a goal as well.”
Speaking to Chelsea’s media following the encounter, Estevao, meanwhile, lauded his teammates and the coaching staff for assisting him in settling in and discovering his rhythm so rapidly. He said: “Things at Chelsea have gone a lot better so far than I maybe imagined.
“I feel so good in training every day and I enjoy every moment. I have fantastic team-mates and coaching staff around me that help me each day, and it’s very helpful that I have my family with me and they’ve helped me really settle into life in England and the Premier League. I couldn’t be happier.”
Chelsea are now set to enjoy a two-week hiatus from Premier League action due to the October international break. They will return to the fray on Saturday, 19th October, when they face off against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.
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Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more.
