The manner in which Estevao danced into the box and fired a rocket towards the roof of the goal drew parallels with his strike for Palmeiras against Chelsea in Philadelphia this summer.

Now, though, the Brazilian is blue. And last night provided more evidence of how fortunate we are of that.

‘The goal from Estevao reminded me of the goal he scored against us at the Club World Cup,’ said Maresca. ‘It was very similar, the same action.

‘Estevao had a very good game, not only because of his goal but also he helped the team a lot in the way we were pressing,' added Maresca. ‘Now Estevao needs to relax, enjoy, arrive at the training ground happy, and just play his football.’

Maresca explained he does not find it hard to protect 18-year-old Brazilian, and that whether he starts or not is down to a collective strategy rather than an individual preference.

‘If he doesn’t play then Pedro Neto plays wide in that position and Pedro Neto is good. We are happy with Pedro. It depends on the game plan who are the 11 players [who start].

‘In probably the most difficult game of the season, Barcelona, we decided to play with Estevao; I am not a coach who doesn’t allow players to play minutes. It’s always about the game plan. A lot of people say we are unpredictable, but the game plan defines the starting eleven.

‘The game plan isn’t always good, sometimes it can be wrong, but when the game plan calls for Estevao, he will play. And he will play many games because he is very good.’

Maresca was also pleased to see the other Chelsea goalscorer on the night, Liam Delap, net his first of the season and first at Stamford Bridge. He chose a big night to do it.

'Liam needed this kind of moment, a goal, because he’s just back from injury,’ the head coach said.

‘I thought that against Burnley he was quite good but he is a striker, a number nine, and they always need a goal.’

The manner and margin of victory against one of Europe’s top sides was about as emphatic as Maresca and the Blues could possibly have hoped for.

The same could be said after the Club World Cup final against Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain, with both victories pointing to the impressive progress being made by Maresca’s young side. He believes such successes are vital to the team’s growth.

‘Winning the Club World Cup gave the players the confidence they need,’ he stated.

‘Last year, we were playing in the Conference League and I said that if you want to build a winning mentality, there is only one way: by winning games. Otherwise, it’s difficult to convince the players you’re building a winning mentality.

‘The Conference League and Club World Cup helped a lot. And now we are trying to do the same and, for sure, the players are better players compared to last season, because we have spent more time together.’