{"id":393194,"date":"2026-01-27T13:29:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-27T13:29:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/393194\/"},"modified":"2026-01-27T13:29:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-27T13:29:09","slug":"andrey-santos-says-chelsea-have-a-superstar-that-has-found-things-difficult-since-his-arrival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/393194\/","title":{"rendered":"Andrey Santos says Chelsea have a ‘superstar’ that has found things difficult since his arrival"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Chelsea are preparing for what is possibly Liam Rosenior\u2019s toughest clash as manager, as the Blues go to Naples to take on Antonio Conte\u2019s side in a crucial Champions League clash.<\/p>\n

Chelsea<\/a> are one of eight teams currently sitting on 13 points in the 36-club table. Yet, only three of the eight teams on 18 points currently sit in the top eight after seven games, which earns instant qualification.<\/p>\n

The next 16 fight it out in a play-off to join the top eight in the Champions League knockout stages. So, Wednesday night comes in the form of a must-win game for Chelsea, if they want to book a last 16 place.<\/p>\n

With the schedule already hectic, Liam Rosenior<\/a> will be desperate to avoid two more games in the form of a Champions League play-off round. In order to do that, he must get the better of Antonio Conte.<\/p>\n

How do you stop a centre-forward like Romelu Lukaku? \ud83d\uded1 <\/p>\n

He should be fit for Napoli vs Chelsea<\/p>\n

\"RomeluPhoto by Alberto Gandolfo\/BSR Agency\/Getty Images <\/p>\n

\ud83d\udc47 Join the debate; share your insight. Use the comment button on the bottom left to have your say <\/p>\n

It starts with team selection, and Rosenior will have a few headaches going into Wednesday night\u2019s clash. In all five games, Rosenior has made five or more changes, but don\u2019t be surprised if that is less in Italy.<\/p>\n

Andrey Santos says Chelsea pal has found things difficult so far<\/p>\n

The win over Palace saw the likes of Reece James, Moises Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez, Marc Cucurella and other players you would expect to see in the starting line-up when Chelsea take on Napoli tomorrow.<\/p>\n

Then, there are a few fringe players. Andrey Santos<\/a> and Estevao<\/a> are certainly that. It is probably 50-50 at this stage over whether they start against Napoli given they played against Palace, but they starred too.<\/p>\n

\"EstevaoPhoto by Bryn Lennon\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

In both cases, it could be said that both players enjoyed their best game in a Chelsea shirt. Santos topped the duels and defensive contribution stats, boasting the second-most tackles and 91% successful passing.<\/p>\n

It would be a travesty if he doesn\u2019t start. For Estevao, a goal and an assist at a time where Pedro Neto is struggling for form. Speaking ahead of the game, Santos heaped praise on Estevao, on Chelsea\u2019s website<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI told Estevao he is a superstar! It\u2019s not easy when you come from another country, another language, it\u2019s hard but he is doing very well. I am so happy to play with him here and in the national team,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Estevao\u2019s best game in a Chelsea shirt? <\/p>\n

Sensational performance from the Brazilian\u2026<\/p>\n

\"Estevao <\/p>\n

\ud83d\udc47 Join the debate; share your insight. Use the comment button on the bottom left to have your say <\/p>\n

What Santos said about Enzo Maresca and Liam Rosenior<\/p>\n

While Joe Cole does not think their tactics are a million miles apart<\/a>, their man management and ability in front of a camera are. Maresca<\/a> was emotional, often acting on a whim and ultimately, it got him sacked.<\/p>\n

Rosenior is calm, measured, insightful. While Rosenior might have earned some teasing from Gary Lineker<\/a> over his \u201cman-age\u201d comments made in France, Simon Jordan says Rosenior is a very intelligent manager<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Santos highlighted what Rosenior has brought to Chelsea, and why he still rates Maresca, as per Football London<\/a>: \u201cHe\u2019s given me a lot of confidence, but it\u2019s not only to me, it\u2019s a lot to the other players as well.<\/p>\n

\"HullPhoto by Daniel Chesterton\/Offside\/Offside via Getty Images<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it\u2019s easier for me because I know him, I know that he wants every player to work hard and fight with an elite mentality to win games and trophies,\u201d Santos said on Rosenior. Then, on Maresca, Santos said:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe previous coach [Enzo Maresca] is a top, top coach. I worked hard with him and I learned a lot from him. This is football, these things can happen,\u201d he added. Rosenior will speak to the media at 6.30PM.<\/p>\n

Join Our Newsletter <\/p>\n

Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Chelsea are preparing for what is possibly Liam Rosenior\u2019s toughest clash as manager, as the Blues go to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":393195,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[147911,29901,218,101,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-393194","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"tag-andrey-santos","9":"tag-estevao","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-sports","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom","14":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/393194","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=393194"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/393194\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/393195"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=393194"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=393194"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=393194"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}