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Team: Esteban has almost played 2 games in the international match week, Neto may start against Burnley

3:15am, 20 November 2025Football

November 20 Chelsea and team reporter KIERANGILL reported that despite Esteban's recent excellent form, Neto may start against Burnley.

When the Brazilian team played against Tunisia on Tuesday, they had Rodrigo, Vinicius and Matheus Cunha on the field. However, when they got a penalty kick, it was Chelsea youngster Esteban who stood at the twelve yard point and made a solid penalty. Esteban has scored in each of his last six starts for club and country, a statistic that will no doubt be taken into consideration by Chelsea as they prepare for Saturday's Premier League trip to Burnley.

Although Maresca does not need to consider the long journey to Esteban this time, the Brazilian team's two games on this international break are both played in England and France. But he must take into account the fact that the 18-year-old played 173 of 180 minutes.

The reporter predicts that Pedro Neto, rather than Esteban, will start as the right winger when Chelsea play against Burnley, especially because Malecasa appreciates Neto's more active attitude when assisting defensive counterattacks. Neto missed the current Portuguese national team game to resolve a minor injury and has now resumed training. The 25-year-old winger has maintained full attendance in the Premier League so far this season.

The good data for the Blues' away trip is that they are the team with the third-best away record in the league this season (the home record ranks only 12th). At the same time, from Chelsea's perspective, the overall advantages of this international competition cycle outweigh the disadvantages, and they benefit from maintaining good communication with each country's national team.

Neto and Enzo Fernandez were allowed to sit out the national team matches for Portugal and Argentina respectively, and other players were not overused - including Reece James, who skipped England's game against Albania. However, Ecuador and Spain obviously did not follow this principle and allowed Moises Caicedo and Marc Cucurella to play the full game in two consecutive games respectively.

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