He shifts his weight, a sway of the hips, one touch, another, a slight change of direction - and he is gone. In the city of Franca, a three-year-old Estevao was already trying to join a local football school. His father, Ivo Goncalves, asked the owner for a chance - and that was how Sergio Freitas, known as Serginho, gave Estevao the first football opportunity of his life. "When Estevao got on the ball it was astonishing, it wasn't normal," Serginho told BBC Sport. Chelsea fans have been saying much the same ever since Estevao, now 18, arrived at Stamford Bridge in the summer.

Source: BBC March 24, 2026 10:28 UTC