Angelo Gabriel goes viral for highlights on Chelsea debut vs Wrexham | OneFootball

Chelsea have made a point of signing some of the most talented young players in world football under Todd Boehly’s new ownership.

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And in last night’s pre-season match against Wrexham, Blues supporters got the chance to see another exciting talent on the pitch.

Angelo Gabriel, who is just 18 years old, was recently signed from Santos for a reported fee of around £13 million.

He came off the bench for the second half against last season’s National League champions and gave Chelsea fans a taste of what he could do.

Who is Angelo Gabriel?

Understandably, supporters are very excited. The likes of Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo have made moves from Brazilian sides Flamengo and Santos to Real Madrid in recent years, and both have gone on to become two of the brightest stars in European football.

There are even parallels to Neymar, who signed for Barcelona from Santos in 2013.

So before getting into last night’s game, let’s paint a picture of just how talented this youngster is.

Despite being so young, Gabriel had already made 129 appearances for Santos before Chelsea signed him.

He came up through the youth teams, and in October 2020, at just 15 years old and 308 days, he was handed his senior debut for the club.

He came off the bench against Fluminense at the Maracana stadium, and in the process became the youngest player in the history of the Brazil national championship.

How old was Neymar when he burst onto the scene for Santos we hear you ask? 17 years old, ancient in comparison to Gabriel.

Gabriel would follow up that record by breaking another one.

In April 2021, he found the back of the net against Lorenzo in the Copa Libertadores. In doing so, he became the youngest goalscorer in that competition.

He has also gone on to feature for Brazil’s youth teams. He has featured for the Under-20 squad but is yet to make his senior debut.

Where does he play and what are his strengths?

Gabriel, like the aforementioned Brazilian players in the last section, is a pacey forward who likes to operate out wide, mostly on the right flank.

In highlights packages, he often likes to cut in on his left foot either for a shot or a neat pass.

Gabriel is an excellent dribbler too, with great balance, blistering speed, and nice footwork allowing him to leave opponents trailing in his wake.

However, at just 18, he is not the kind of player who can carry a team by himself just yet.

That is exhibited by his total output during his time at Santos, where he managed just five goals in total, along with 10 assists.

Those are not bad numbers at all for a young player, but his talent does require some refinement.

Barcelona were interested in him

Gabriel has received no shortage of praise from people either, with former Arsenal midfielder and Brazil international Julio Baptista expressing his excitement about the young prodigy.

“Angelo Gabriel is an incredible player, for someone so young,” he told Gambling Zone.

“He has a great left foot, but he can play across the front-three and also behind the 9. He’s a strong runner, he has incredible skills, especially dribbling, and I think it will work well at Chelsea because he’s so talented.

“When players move from Brazil to Europe, they need time to complete their game but he’s an incredible talent.”

All of the excitement around him led to Chelsea spending a significant sum of money to bring him to Stamford Bridge.

There had also been interest from Spanish side Barcelona, but according to SPORT, the Blaugrana decided against using their right of first refusal.

The current La Liga champions recently completed the signing of another Brazilian talent, Vitor Roque, in a deal worth a reported €40 million.

How did Gabriel look for Chelsea?

With the transfer completed just days ago, Gabriel has joined the rest of Chelsea’s squad for pre-season training and matches.

Fans initially got to see what he could do in a video from training. The youngster picked up the ball in a small-sided game, before cutting inside and finishing well.

With new club manager Mauricio Pochettino eager to take a closer look at him during a match, Gabriel came off the bench against Wrexham during Chelsea’s first game of pre-season.

The Blues were already 2-0 up against their opponents, but their new recruit continued to push on for more opportunities.

He cut inside with the ball multiple times, before picking out a teammate with an excellent pass.

Gabriel should have arguably had an assist to his name 70 minutes into the game when he floated a lovely cross into the box for the unmarked Raheem Sterling, but the 28-year-old could not keep his header down.

Nevertheless, Gabriel’s persistence was eventually rewarded.

In added time, the winger once again cut in, exchanging some neat passes with his new teammates before picking out Ben Chilwell with a delightful through ball, and the defender finished superbly to make it 5-0.

Chelsea’s new man has certainly made an impression on supporters, with his highlights going viral shortly after the match.

The footage has been viewed more than 300,000 times, with more than 8,000 fans liking the video.

Not a bad way to introduce yourself. Check out his full highlights for yourselves below.

Watch: Gabriel’s highlights against Wrexham

What next for Gabriel and Chelsea?

Despite Gabriel’s impressive showing during his first outing for Chelsea, the expectation ahead of the new season is that he will go out on loan to secure regular minutes so that he can develop.

According to a report from The Athletic, Ligue 1 side RC Strasbourg, who were recently purchased by Chelsea’s new owners, are the most likely destination for him.

But with more matches and opportunities left to come in pre-season, could Gabriel do enough to persuade Pochettino to keep him in west London?

He could potentially be a backup to Chelsea’s other right winger, Noni Madueke, who was signed from PSV Eindhoven in January.

Pochettino suggested after the game that he would be using pre-season to assess the potential of his young stars but also insisted that fans must be patient with them.

“'It is good to have the opportunity to see all these young guys who can show their quality,” the coach said after the match.

“It is important for them and for us to have a real assessment. For sure all have quality, they need time and space to show they can compete for a place in the squad.”

Chelsea’s next pre-season fixture is against Brighton on Sunday 23 July. No doubt Pochettino and Chelsea fans will be excited to see what Gabriel might do against Premier League opposition.