Pedro Neto's versatility keeps Estêvão out of Chelsea starting role, Trivela reports

What happened

Pedro Neto has started Chelsea's last nine Premier League matches and has become one of the team's most functional players, according to a report by Trivela. The Portuguese winger's importance is not limited to competing for the right-sided attacking role: coach Xabi Alonso has used him as a wing-back, midfielder, winger and even a centre-forward, shifting his position to suit the team's needs without taking him out of the side. That versatility helps explain why 19-year-old Brazilian Estêvão, despite showing he can make an impact when given opportunities, still struggles to establish himself as a regular starter.

Report details

Neto has also dismissed any suggestion of a short-term exit. He had been linked with clubs in Saudi Arabia before signing a contract extension with Chelsea running until 2032, and he made clear he is not considering a move away from Stamford Bridge. "I am attracted by Chelsea. My head is only here. The club showed affection for me, gave me everything and I am very grateful for that. I don't think about other scenarios," Neto said in an interview with "O Jogo". He also praised Alonso's impact, saying the coach brought part of the winning mentality he built during his playing career to the squad and made the team's tactical ideas clearer.

The situation directly affects Estêvão, who mainly competes for the spaces Neto occupies but faces a rival who does not depend on a single position to stay in the team. Even when Alonso needs to change the attacking structure, the Portuguese player can simply switch roles. In recent weeks Estêvão received opportunities and showed the ability to make a difference, but that did not produce an immediate change in the pecking order: Neto remained in the side and was even moved into the centre-forward role when Chelsea needed a different solution up front.

According to Trivela, Estêvão is not out of the plans. The Brazilian is still regarded as one of the squad's highest-potential talents and is expected to gain space as his adaptation progresses. The challenge is that his competition is not simply about beating a right winger for a place. To break into the team definitively, Estêvão must convince Alonso to give up a player capable of filling several roles without upsetting the team's balance. With nine consecutive Premier League starts and a contract to 2032, Neto has become more than a positional rival and one of Chelsea's hardest players to remove.