Journalist recalled the case of the Santos star, who signed a pre-contract with Barcelona days before the 2011 Club World Cup final
Journalist Juca Kfouri compared the current situation of striker Estêvão, a product of Cruzeiro and now at Palmeiras, with the beginning of Neymar’s career. The commentator recalled that the Verdão player will face his future club, Chelsea, and mentioned the case of the Santos star, who signed a pre-contract with Barcelona days before the 2011 Club World Cup final.
“It’s a completely different situation from Neymar’s situation. Neymar and his father negotiated with Barcelona ten days before knowing that they would face Barcelona in the World Cup final. That is absolutely inexcusable,” said Juca Kfouri, on the Posse de Bola program, on the UOL Channel.
“I can’t understand the passion that Santos fans have for a guy who committed this kind of betrayal. Betrayal! In his case, it was betrayal, he signed the contract with Barcelona later, not before. Estêvão’s story is completely different, it was made long before Palmeiras even knew who their opponents would be in the World Cup.”
Neymar signed a pre-contract with Barcelona in December 2011, before the end of his contract with Santos, which ran until August 2014. The transfer to the Spanish club was made official in May 2013. A few days after signing, Santos was thrashed by Barcelona 4-0 in the Club World Cup final.
Estêvão’s case presented a different scenario. In June 2024, Palmeiras formalized the player’s transfer to Chelsea, with terms that had already been agreed since May. The value of the deal could reach 61.5 million euros (R$356.7 million at the exchange rate at the time), including bonuses for goals.
The agreement stipulated that the 18-year-old would only join the English club after the 2025 Club World Cup. The possibility of a clash between Palmeiras and Chelsea was initially remote, but it came to fruition.
