Chelsea added another two players to their growing collection of sparkling young talent when they officially confirmed the signings of Geovany Quenda and Dario Essugo this week.
Both players are poised to join from Sporting at the start of the summer transfer window, although Quenda will return to the Portuguese side to spend next season on loan with his boyhood club.
Essugo, on the other hand, is reportedly viewed as a ‘ball-winner’ who can provide depth for Enzo Maresca next term, as per this report by Sky Sports News.
The Chelsea head coach has a plethora of young talent at his disposal ahead of the 2025/26 campaign and it will be interesting to see which ones will make the step up.
The Chelsea youngsters who could break through next season
Essugo is one of those players who could have an eye on making the first-team, as he has made 17 appearances in LaLiga on loan at Las Palmas in the current campaign.
Tyrique George, who has come up through the academy system, has now played 17 times for the senior side and registered four assists this season.
The 19-year-old sensation, who has one assist in five Premier League outings, may look to use his experience this term to push on and secure a regular spot in Maresca’s side next year.
Andrey Santos, who is currently on loan at Strasbourg in Ligue 1, is another player who could make a breakthrough, having averaged 4.3 tackles and interceptions per game across 24 starts this season.
Another player who could make an impact at Stamford Bridge next season is Brazil international Estevao Willian, who can finally join the club this summer.
Chelsea have the world's second-best wonderkid on their hands
The Brazilian forward turns 18 in April and this means that he can officially make the move to England in the summer transfer window, ready to push for a place in Maresca’s team next term.
In The Pipeline
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Estevao, who was described as a “phenomenon” by his agent Andre Cury, was recently named in GOAL’s NXGN top 50 wonderkids in football in 2025 list.
He ranked second on the list, only behind Lamine Yamal, and was above the likes of Endrick, Pau Cubarsi, and Warren Zaire-Emery, among others, which suggests that the Blues have the second-best wonderkid in the world on their hands.
GOAL.com's 10 best wonderkids in world football.
Yamal has already won the European Championship and LaLiga, whilst racking up 20 goals and 24 assists for Barcelona, before the age of 18, which illustrates what a generational talent he is.
Estevao, who was described as a “future Ballon d’Or winner” by data analyst Ben Mattinson, has been capped four times by Brazil and produced 20 goals and ten assists in 59 matches for Palmeiras to date.
Appearances (starts)
31 (26)
xG
10.54
Goals
13
Big chances created
11
Assists
9
As you can see in the table above, the future Chelsea star produced regular quality as both a scorer and a creator of goals in the Brazilian top-flight in the 2024 campaign as a right-sided winger, cutting in on his left-foot.
These statistics show that the potential is there for him to arrive at Stamford Bridge in the summer as a player who can make an instant impact, despite the fact that he will have only just turned 18, because the young gem is already shining at first-team level.
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Chelsea must, now, ensure that they provide Estevao with the right environment to develop and thrive at Cobham, to ensure that he can fulfill his potential and be a future Ballon d’Or winner with the club.