Lucas Esteves Souza

Lucas Esteves Souza came through Palmeiras' academy and had already won the Copa Libertadores twice and the Copa do Brasil by the time he was 21. To get minutes, he went abroad on loan to Colorado Rapids in Major League Soccer, where a run of 32 appearances earned him the club's Young Player of the Year award.

The path back into Brazilian football ran through a string of loans: a brief Cearense title with Fortaleza, then a season in the second division with Atlético Goianiense. It was at Vitória, from 2024, that he settled into a regular starting role, making 54 appearances and adding two goals and five assists from left-back, and picking up a Campeonato Baiano title along the way.

That form took him to Grêmio in 2025 for a reported $1 million fee, though the move did not work out as planned. After 23 matches, his contract was terminated at the end of January 2026. Within days he had moved on again, joining Atlético San Luis in Mexico on loan with an option to buy, signing terms that run to the end of 2029.

Esteves has built his career less on a single defining moment than on a habit of using loan spells to force his way back into contention, each one adding matches and, eventually, a trophy or an individual award to his record.