Estêvão has spoken about his limited opportunities at Chelsea under Xabi Alonso, three weeks after concerns about his situation first surfaced.
The 19-year-old has played only 148 minutes this season. Those have been spread across six appearances, with just two starts. And that scenario has already generated some noise around him and his future.
That is a very different situation to the one he finds with Brazil though. Carlo Ancelotti is expected to give the youngster more opportunities during the international break.
Now the message from Estêvão himself is that he can only concentrate on making the most of whatever chances Alonso gives him.
Estêvão comenta parceria com Endrick em novo ciclo da seleção brasileira: “Saber que o Ancelotti confia na gente é uma motivação a mais.”
📸 Getty Images#futebol #seleçãobrasileira #ge pic.twitter.com/oUUPaZMorL
— ge (@geglobo) September 22, 2026
Estêvão addresses lack of Chelsea minutes
The Chelsea youngster spoke during a press conference while he is away with Brazil and asked about his situation at Stamford Bridge.
At a press conference seen above, Estêvão avoided any suggestion of a problem with Alonso and pointed instead to the competition within Chelsea’s squad.
“Every manager has their own way of playing, and of course we work every day and give our best every day. That’s what I do. We have a lot of extremely high-quality players at Chelsea.”
“I focus on what I can control. When I get an opportunity, I try to give my best. With every opportunity I’ve had, I think I’ve made the most of it.”
“I try to control what I can and leave tomorrow in God’s hands. I have a lot of confidence in myself as well.”
That confidence will be important if his playing time doesn’t improve. But for now, he is publicly keeping the focus on his own performances.
| Every Chelsea signing 26/27 | Previous Club | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Morgan Rogers | Aston Villa | £120m |
| Maxence Lacroix | Crystal Palace | £52m |
| Geovany Quenda | Sporting | £41.5m |
| Marco Palestra | Atalanta | £47m |
| Valentin Barco | RC Strasbourg | £34m |
| Pep Chavarría | Rayo Vallecano | £17m |
| Emiliano Martínez | Aston Villa | £7.8m |
| Danny Welbeck | Brighton | £5.1m |
| Jordan Henderson | Brentford | Free |
Staying available after difficult first season
His first Chelsea season was repeatedly interrupted by physical problems. Globo Esporte recalls he suffered five injuries, spent 129 days sidelined and missed 24 matches in 2025/26.
The most serious problem eventually cost him a place at the World Cup.
“I’ve been taking great care of myself every day. Of course, no player wants to get injured, so unfortunately it was something that happened a lot last year.”
“I’m doing a lot to prevent it, doing a lot of physiotherapy, taking great care of my body, my diet, my sleep, things an athlete needs to perform at their best on the pitch.”
“Being available is a huge joy for me, something I didn’t always have last year. Just being on the pitch already makes me very happy.”
His return to Brazil should now provide some of the football he has been missing in London. Estêvão has 11 senior appearances for his country and five goals. All five came under Ancelotti.
His last Brazil appearance was in November 2025, when he scored in the 1-1 draw against Tunisia.
World Cup disappointment now behind him
Missing the World Cup was understandably difficult, particularly after Estêvão had become an important player for Ancelotti. He says the disappointment eventually gave way to supporting his teammates from home.
“The first few days were very difficult, but thank God I was able to make an excellent recovery and return to the pitch and to the Brazilian national team.”
“After the first month passed, when it had really sunk in, the most important thing for me was supporting the Brazilian national team.”
“With every game, every goal, I celebrated a lot because I know the people who were involved and I know how important it is for every player who was there.”
“So, at that moment, the only thing I focused on was hoping for the best for the Brazilian national team.”
Estêvão is now back with Brazil and available again. That alone clearly means plenty to him. The next challenge is turning that availability into regular football when he returns to Chelsea.
🇵🇹 Jesse Derry | Chelsea Loan Watch: Blues starlet frustrated with just 26 minutes https://t.co/26dkwpNGIH #cfc
— Sport Witness (@Sport_Witness) September 22, 2026
