Estêvão was back in London last week as Chelsea beat Spurs in our final home match of the season, taking part in the post-match lap of appreciation as well, but he’s now returned to Brazil once again to continue his rehab at Palmeiras for the hamstring injury that ruled him out from our last several games, as well as the World Cup.
Chelsea have reportedly authorized this idea, and are continuing to monitor and oversee to some extent his rehab, though I still find this a rather curious arrangement
— even if it’s supposedly being done this way to provide a familiar environment for the youngster as he deals with the disappointment of missing out on the World Cup.
Then again, despite his summer calendar opening up, even more curious is the continuing preference for conservative treatment on the hamstring injury that was given the worst grade possible for hamstring injuries following initial assessment. Seems like a gamble with relatively limited reward yet massive downside. A more invasive, surgical approach would mean more time out now, but would in theory, reduce the chances of a recurrence and ensure better healing.
And it’s not like the conservative treatment is expected to provide miracles. According to ESPN Brasil, Estêvão’s targeting only ‘early August’ for his return, by which time Chelsea will be just about done with preseason and ready to start the new Premier League campaign (first match is on the weekend of August 22). So the 19-year-old will miss the start of the season either way.
