In a day and age of rising stars in soccer, 17-year-old Brazilian prodigy Esteban William Almeida, a.k.a.
Messineo
, has once again become the center of attention of major giants. Previously, La Liga giants Barcelona showed strong interest in him, but the latest news shows that Barcelona
has decided to give up on chasing the promising right winger.
Messinho once again showed his talent and strength in the recent Copa do Brasil tournament. In Palmeiras' match against Botafogo, he was honored as the best player of the match as he not only achieved a shutout at the end of the game, but also completed 11 successful crosses and made 6 key passes throughout the match. However, even with such an outstanding performance, Barcelona finally made the decision to give up.
It was revealed that the main reason for Barcelona to give up Messinho is its high default fee and the club's reassessment of its reinforcement strategy. Messinho's default fee is as high as 60 million euros, even if the price is reduced by 80-90% discount, it is still a lot of money for Barcelona. In addition, Barcelona in the introduction of Vitor Roque, found that the 19-year-old young player did not quickly adapt to the rhythm of the team, but also failed to win the trust of the manager Xavi. Therefore, Barcelona is not willing to step on the "mine" again and invest a large sum of money in another young player.
Despite Barcelona pulling out of the race for Messinho, Premier League rivals Chelsea have shown strong interest. According to Brazilian media reports, Chelsea have made an offer to Messinho of a fixed 30 million euros, plus 25 million floating bonuses, totaling 55 million euros. Palmeiras, while asking for €55 million, prefers a higher fixed transfer fee. At present, the two clubs are not much difference, as long as Chelsea submitted a formal offer, it is expected to sign the young talent for a total of 55 million euros.
For Messinho, despite missing out on the opportunity to join Barcelona, he still has a bright future ahead of him. He has great skills and talent, as well as the determination to break into European football. Therefore, he just needs to be patient and wait until the summer transfer window opens in 2025, he may realize his dream. For Chelsea, the successful signing of Messinho will undoubtedly inject new vitality into the team's future.
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