Andrey Santos is expected to leave Chelsea before Thursday’s transfer deadline, so the club is working on another loan agreement for him.
The 19-year-old had a frustrating six months at Nottingham Forest, playing just one Premier League game—a seven-minute cameo at the end of October during a 3-0 loss to Liverpool—while also missing out on many other opportunities.
Because of his limited playing time and stunted development, Chelsea decided to activate a loan agreement’s break clause and brought him back at the beginning of the January transfer window.
Santos’ chances of being loaned out again have been further diminished by the return of Cesare Casadei, a former loanee, contrary to manager Mauricio Pochettino’s suggestion that he evaluate the Brazilian in training.
As a result, according to the Evening Standard, Chelsea has chosen to loan Santos to sister club Strasbourg for a second time.
Winger Angelo Gabriel, a teenager who has played 18 times for Patrick Vieira’s Ligue 1 team, was already sent by the west Londoners to the team.
The co-sporting director of Chelsea, Laurence Stewart, is eager for Santos to relocate to France and is involved in Strasbourg’s recruitment strategy.
Although he still wants another winger, Vieira has already approved the move and is pleased to have Santos join his team for the second half of the campaign.
Santos may end up at Strasbourg after it was suggested by Chelsea that he was capable of playing at a higher level. However, there have been few offers that fit his needs.
Earlier this month, when the Brazilian returned from Forest and was asked about his plans, Pochettino replied, “We need to sit together in an official meeting.”
Every day, without fail, we discuss and evaluate the squad. The market is now open, and yes, I believe we own certain players, such as Andrey Santos, who recently returned from Nottingham Forest; these are players for whom we must make decisions.
But I’m content with my team as it is. Our goal is for the players to recover as quickly as possible.
However, we are currently evaluating the situation. We have seen the team and some potential outcomes, so we know what we can and cannot do. However, we haven’t made a decision as of yet.
