‘The new Pele’, ‘the new Maradona’ or ‘the new Messi’โadjectives like this are very regular and commonplace in football. These adjectives are often added to the name of a talented new footballer. Overused, these adjectives are sometimes annoying. And not being able to handle the weight of these names, many potential footballers fell out of the scene. Who knows, this name India is tomorrow for them or not!
However, this trend has not stopped. The story of the emergence of the ‘new Messi’ or ‘new Pele’ is still heard constantly. Brazilian prodigy Estevao Willian has joined that trend. Who, however, is not exactly being called the ‘new Messi’, he is being called ‘Messinio’. Messinio literally means Little Messi. The 16-year-old teenager has already caught the attention of European clubs.
Willian started his youth career at Cruzeiro. It was there that the budding footballer became known as Messinio. After spending four years at this club, he moved to Palmeiras. Palmeiras literally “kidnapped” him from Cruzeiro. However, there has been a scandal in Brazilian football. But in the end, this Brazilian remained in Palmeiras. Since then, Willian has been developing himself by playing in the age group of this club.
Palmeiras, however, has been a hot name for producing footballers in recent times. A few days ago, another Brazilian teenager, Endrik, made a move from this club to Real. Although everything is finalized, he has not yet joined the Santiago Bernabeu club due to age. After turning 18 next June, this Brazilian will officially sign up for Real.
Now Palmeiras will benefit immensely if Willian, like Endrik, is sent to a European superpower. Interest from European clubs suggests that the task will not be too difficult. Several European clubs are already interested in signing Willian. Although this footballer’s dream is to play for Barcelona.
Willian, who came into the discussion at the moment due to being on the radar of European clubs, drew the spotlight to himself earlier. At just 10 years old, he surpassed Neymar and Rodrigo as the youngest Brazilian player to sign with Nike. Later this agreement was extended till 2026.
And the picture of Willian’s success on the field is very exciting. Since 2021, the famous footballer has won 8 titles for Palmeiras’ age group. Among them, Willian grabbed everyone’s attention by scoring a hat-trick against Sao Paulo in the final of an age group tournament.
Only 16-year-old Willian got a chance in the main team after spreading the light in the age group. Last year, he made his debut in the last match of the Brazilian Serie A against former club Cruzeiro. That makes him number 4 on the club’s list of youngest players.
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This year is considered to be very important for Willian’s career. However, Willian is ready to win with both hands due to talent and ability, said Joao Paulo Sampaio, the head of Palmeiras’ age group. “These types of players have a very strong personality, driven by ego to say, ‘I am me, I can and I can,'” he said in an interview with FIFA. And they show it by doing it. The work also becomes easier for such talents from other planets.
Sampaio also talked about calling Willian Messino. This footballer, who is still in the youth circle, wants to leave this name behind and identify himself separately. However, this coach did not deny his similarity with the Argentine legend in terms of talent. In addition to club football, Messini has also started to spread his wings at the international level. He also made his debut with the Under-17 World Cup in Indonesia in 2023. Willian scored three goals and three assists for the team in the tournament. However, his team had to leave the quarter-finals after losing to Argentina.
A comparison with Messi suggests that his main strength is dribbling. Although the journey of this footballer playing as a winger is just the beginning. Comparison with Messi now may seem excessive to many. But Sampaio, watching him from the front, said why Willian is called Messinio, ‘His control on the ball is incredible. He is also excellent with ball and foot speed. Palmeiras photographer snaps 100 pictures of him running with the ball at his feet. All of them showed that the ball was stuck on his left leg.
While there is no doubt about Willian’s talent, there is still room for improvement. Sampaio, however, thinks that the deficiencies will be compensated with time, “Then he has to improve physically. It’s just a matter of time and maturity though.’
Comparing him with Palmeiras teammates Endrik and Luis Guillerme, Sampaio said, “Willian is a great technical talent. Although physically he is not yet fully matured. He is younger than the other two and has yet to mature physically. But he is a great player.
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Even though the name is Messino, many see in him the shadow of another Argentinian, Angel Di Maria. His ability to keep the ball at his feet and magical left foot is what makes Willian so great. Apart from that, this footballer can attack any defense by entering through the wing. Along with all this there is the matter of great dribbling and powerful shots.
