Chelsea and Manchester City among teams vying for in-demand Vasco da Gama midfielder

Chelsea among the Premier League clubs in the race to sign midfielder Andrey Santos

According to The Times (h/t Metro), Chelsea and Manchester City are among the Premier League clubs in the race to sign Vasco da Gama midfielder Andrey Santos.

Along with those two rivals, Liverpool and Newcastle United are also interested in the young midfielder. French champions Paris-Saint Germain have the name in the interested party.

The report also claims that despite the competition, Chelsea are leading the race to sign the 18-year-old. They are currently at the front of the queue to complete this deal.

Apart from spending a lot of money to add players for the senior team, the Blues spent a good amount on signing top young talents in the preceding summer transfer window – the first under the new regime since the takeover.

It is all part of chairman Todd Boehly’s ‘Vision 2030‘ plan that includes signing top young players to improve the quality of the youth teams and also prepare these players to challenge for a spot in the senior team simultaneously.

As part of that plan, Chelsea were interested in signing another young Brazilian Endrick, and were leading the race for some time. But, Real Madrid came in and pinched him away.

We hope that the same thing is not repeated when it comes to signing Santos. The Brazil youth international is a central midfielder by trade who can operate as a defensive midfielder if required.

In the recently-concluded Brazilian Serie B season, the 18-year-old scored eight goals in 36 appearances in all competitions. 20 of those 36 appearances came as a defensive midfielder.

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Having missed out on Endrick, Chelsea would be looking to sign Santos to add a young and exciting midfield player to the youth side. He may not be far away from challenging for a spot in the senior team as well.