Estevao Willian’s agent has revealed that Chelsea’s plans for the youngster helped persuade him to join them ahead of other clubs.
Back in May the news broke that Chelsea had agreed a deal with Brazilian side Palmeiras for the transfer of 17-year-old attacker Estevao Willian. Chelsea confirmed the signing last month.
The youngster was reportedly wanted by other top European clubs including Barcelona, but Chelsea snapped him up for a reported initial fee of £29 million.
However, Estevao’s agent Andre Cury has claimed that the fixed fee is €45m (£38m) plus an addition €16.5m (£13.9m) in add-ons.
In an interview with journalist Danilo Lavieri, Cury explained that the add-on will be activated once Estevao appears in 70 games.
During Palmeiras’ 2-2 draw with Gremio earlier this week, Estevao showed exactly why Chelsea decided to splash the cash.
When asked why Chelsea won the race to sign the teenage sensation, Cury explained that the Premier League club plan to convert the winger into a number 10.
“The whole project was worked out with the player’s father, who is a former athlete from Francana [football club based in Sao Paulo], a former goalkeeper,” Cury said.
“He knows a lot about football, and we talked with the player. Chelsea’s project is to have a new, young team with organisation and investment.
“They also see Estevao playing as a number 10. Here he plays as a winger, but there they see Estevão in that role. It’s an important thing.”
Cury is so confident that his client will succeed at Chelsea, that he argued that he is better than Neymar was at the same age.
“He has quality, talent, speed, change of direction, intelligence. In fact, if you compare Neymar at his age, Estevao is above what Neymar was.
“At 17, Estevao plays better than Neymar did at 17. Whether he will reach Neymar’s peak, we will only know with time.”
Estevao will remain at Palmeiras for one more year, before joining Chelsea after the FIFA Club World Cup next summer.
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