As Chelsea arrived at West London neighbours Brentford for their Premier League game, one exciting player was nowhere to be seen amongst his teammates.
Estevao Willian has enjoyed a very strong start to life after his high profile move from Brazil to West London, and has been a starter for the last two games against West Ham and Fulham.
His impressive recent outings saw him called up to Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil senior side, where Estevao scored his first international goal in an electric display.
The youngster found himself on the bench for their second fixture against Bolivia, and returned to Stamford Bridge alongside teammates Joao Pedro and Andrey Santos.
Estevao Willian reacts during Chelsea v Fulham - Premier League
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Why Estevao Willian was absent from Brentford vs Chelsea
While his international colleagues were in the squad, Estevao wasn’t, and Enzo Maresca told Sky Sports that the reason for this was due to an illness that the winger had suffered while on international duty.
He said: “Estevao is because he was ill over the last two weeks on international duty, that is why he is not with us.”
The Italian elected to start Jamie Gittens and Pedro Neto on the wings to face Brentford, while he handed a debut to loanee Facundo Buonanotte in place of Cole Palmer, who was fit enough to make the bench.
With big fixtures coming their way thick and fast, Maresca will be hoping that it will not be long before Estevao and Palmer are back and competing for minutes again.
Enzo Maresca arrives prior to Brentford v Chelsea - Premier League
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Estevao on the right track at Chelsea
There was always going to be a lot of pressure on Estevao when he made the move to Stamford Bridge, given just how impressive he was during his time at Palmeiras.
However, his excellent start to life with the first team has been a sign of the character he has, and how determined he is to get the best out of his potential.
John Obi Mikel believes Estevao is on the right track to become a star at Stamford Bridge, and many will agree based on what they have seen from the first few weeks of his time in West London.