Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images
Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images
Chelsea cannot afford to spend time dwelling on their defeat to Arsenal at the weekend.
Yes, it was disappointing to lose to the Gunners once again (will this horrible streak ever end?). Pedro Neto will be wondering what would have happened if his shot towards the end of the first half had gone in and not hit the post.
There is no rest for the wicked, though. Chelsea play Leeds United in the Carabao Cup this Wednesday before taking on Hull City in the Premier League, which is why there is no time to overthink this loss. Chelsea need to bounce back with a win against Hull, and Estevao Willian could help them to do just that!
Estevao Willian's minutes
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Xabi Alonso should bring Estevao Willian into the team
Estevao was able to make an impact when he came on against Arsenal at the Emirates, with the winger almost equalising for Chelsea at the end of the game.
His brilliant curling shot was saved by David Raya, who acknowledged just how good a strike it was after the match.
Raya puffed out his cheeks and embraced Estevao after the full-time whistle, expressing his relief over being able to deny the Brazilian’s effort.
On TalkingPoints, a couple of Chelsea fans have now questioned why Estevao was not brought on sooner.
Cole Palmer, Joao Pedro and Morgan Rogers were always going to play after how they have started the season, so there was no room for Estevao to be named in the first XI, while it was tricky to bring him on in Chelsea’s 3-4-2-1 shape.
Alonso did introduce him to the match in the end, but you suspect some will now be calling for the 19-year-old to start going forward.
Estevao of Chelsea
Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images
Against Hull, there is no reason not to include him in the side. At home against a newly-promoted team, Chelsea probably do not need to line up with five defenders.
There is an opportunity here for Alonso to switch to a back four and get another attacker into the XI, which should be Estevao.
It was recently claimed that Estevao fears for his game time under Alonso. If he does not get a good amount of minutes against Hull, those fears will become understandable.