Chelsea star Estevao a 'strong contender' to replace Mohamed Salah at Liverpool
Ciaran McCarthy
Chelsea winger Estevao is a 'strong contender' to take the spot on the wing at Liverpool that Mohamed Salah will leave this summer, according to Fichajes.
Liverpool will lose Salah in the summer, with confirmation of his exit coming in March. A man with almost 450 club appearances, 257 goals and 122 assists, as well as two Premier Leagues, a Champions League and more titles with the Anfield outfit, will be tough to replace.
A number of top options have been mooted, such as Bradley Barcola, Ousmane Dembele, Leroy Sane, and the latest man to hit the Reds radar, per a report, is Chelsea's Estevao.
It's stated he is a 'strong contender' to fill the gap that Salah will leave on the right wing. Speed, talent and a future-orientated approach are on the mind at Liverpool, it's said, and Estevao seemingly fits into that.
Both his current talent and his potential to improve means that the Reds are looking favourably on him.
The report states Liverpool would be willing to offer between €80-100million (£69.2-86.5m) to claim the Brazilian youngster, who cost Chelsea an initial £29million fee.
It feels unlikely that his value has risen quite so much after his first season in England, though the fact that both clubs are within England, and the Blues would be selling to a league rival if they did so, means there's a premium on Estevao's services.
The suggestion is that the higher end of the scale could challenge Chelsea to accept.
Estevao has shown glimpses of brilliance
Estevao has eight goals and four assists in all competitions in his first campaign with the Blues, having missed a couple of stretches due to injury.
He scored in three consecutive Champions League games in October and November, making him just the third teenager to score on his first three starts in the competition, after elite talents Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland.
That statistic shows he's got huge potential, but it's perhaps not mixed in with enough current form for him to be the man to replace Salah.
The Liverpool superstar hasn't failed to net 10 goals in all competitions in any of his seasons at Anfield, and is regularly above 20 goals, while Estevao is yet to secure 10 for Chelsea.
Some of the other options on the Liverpool radar might be more worthwhile going after for now.
