Manchester United and Chelsea club badges (Photo by Catherine Ivill, Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Manchester United are reportedly still interested in a potential surprise move for Chelsea’s talented young Brazilian midfielder Andrei Santos.
The Red Devils have a long list of targets to target in that area of the pitch following Manuel Ugarte’s struggles and with Casemiro aging and past his best.
Despite performing well during his loan spell at Strasbourg, Santos hasn’t had much playing time for Chelsea, and it looks like Manchester United could be a surprise suitor.
That’s according to talkSPORT, which lists Santos on United’s list for the position alongside Carlos Bareva, Adam Wharton and Conor Gallagher.
Manchester United tried to sign Andrei Santos in the summer
The report also explains that United first discussed Santos in the summer when they were in talks to sell Alejandro Garnacho to Chelsea.
The 21-year-old has plenty of competition for his place at Stamford Bridge, so it probably makes sense for MUFC to consider luring him away.
Still, talkSPORT insists Chelsea have no intention of selling Santos, so it’s understandable that Chelsea would be wary of letting such a big prospect go to their main rivals.
Can Andrei Santos break into the Chelsea team?
However, it will not be easy for Santos to earn regular minutes at Chelsea, given that he is competing with Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandes for a midfield position.
However, CFC will be wary of making the same mistakes they have made in the past, especially when releasing Mohamed Salah and Kevin De Bruyne as young players.
Salah and De Bruyne didn’t get much of a chance before Chelsea let them go, but they have since gone on to become world-class players for rivals Liverpool and Manchester City, causing problems for the west London giants.
Santos could have similar potential, so it would be a good idea for Chelsea to find a home for him before he is tempted by an opportunity like United.