Three games into Xabi Alonso's reign at Stamford Bridge, the Brazilian has told those close to him that he does not expect to see much playing time under the Spaniard, who arrived at Chelsea this summer following a short and difficult spell in charge of Real Madrid.
Estêvão's concerns come after a frustrating end to last season, when a thigh injury sustained in April kept him out of the run-in and cost him a place at the World Cup.
His minutes so far under the new manager have done little to ease those fears. He came on for the final seven minutes of the season-opening defeat to Fulham, then started Chelsea's League Cup tie against Luton Town — a fixture English clubs traditionally use to rotate their squads — before failing to leave the bench entirely in the 4-3 win over Brighton.
Competition for places in Chelsea's forward line is intense.
Estêvão feels most comfortable playing through the middle of the attack, but that role currently looks set to belong to Cole Palmer, the club's number 10, or Morgan Rogers, by some distance Chelsea's most expensive signing of the transfer window.
One alternative would be to challenge Pedro Neto for the right wing-back role in Alonso's system, but the Brazilian is understood to be reluctant to go down that route, partly because he believes it would require him to add muscle mass in a way that could cost him the mobility central to his game.
Those close to Estêvão say he remains fond of the club and wants to stay, but that his stance could shift if he continues to find opportunities limited through the first half of the season, potentially opening the door to a move when the European winter window opens in January.
He arrived at Chelsea from Palmeiras for a fee of €61.5m in a deal that made headlines across Brazilian football, and has gone on to make 38 appearances for the club, contributing eight goals and three assists.
Chelsea's summer spending only added to the sense of competition Estêvão now faces. Rogers arrived from Aston Villa as the club's marquee attacking addition, while the emergence of Alonso's preferred system — built around Palmer centrally and Neto on the right — has left few obvious openings for a player who wants to operate through the heart of the pitch. How Alonso manages that squad depth over the coming months may prove decisive in whether Estêvão sees out the season at Stamford Bridge.