5 of 6 dribbles completed – Chelsea starlet unafraid of physical Arsenal, is Blues’ biggest threat again | OneFootball

Chelsea managed to score twice against Arsenal last night in the EFL Cup semi final first leg, including a goal after 83 minutes. That not only keeps the two legged tie alive, it also gave a bit of an injection of confidence and positivity to a situation that would otherwise have seemed pretty gloomy.

Estevao steps up once again in latest start

Estevao Willian in attack. (Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC)

In the interests of staying positive, we’re looking at who played best last night. Alejandro Garnacho gets the credit for scoring twice, but it was Estevao whose 90 minutes performance impressed most.

He completed 5 of the 6 dribbles he attempted. Nobody else on the pitch completed more than 3.

What continues to be amazing about Estevao isn’t just his talent, which has been obvious since the first grainy Brasilerao clips we saw. It’s his maturity on the pitch. He’s so totally unafraid to take responsibility in every attack, to shoulder the burden of taking risks. He doesn’t care if they come off or not, and if he struggles he’s right back up there trying again.

In a team of far more experienced players, the only attacking threat Chelsea really had came from shifting the ball to the right and seeing what their teenage talent could do. It’s not a great sign from the team – but it’s so promising that Estevao can handle that sort of pressure, especially against such a strong side with such physical players.

In other news…

It’s been a very quiet January for Chelsea so far, but it could be about to get busier. Filip Jorgensen is another player linked with a winter exit, as West Ham sniff around him.

Leaks from within Chelsea have started claiming that key players were getting frustrated by Enzo Maresca before he was removed as manager. It all sounds rather convenient for those in charge.