Andrey Santos has proven himself a valuable part of French football, both on the pitch and as a charmer. Santos has gathered quite the number of admirers or himself. People have made enquiries about him. And everyday it becomes clearer that Chelsea have a decision to make; and they will be forced to make it sooner than expected given his form on-loan with Strasbourg. For Santos and his supporters, he has always had potential. Maybe Steve Cooper could not see it. But with the Blues, inside the Brazilian Federation, and now with RCS. There was never any doubt about his ability. Now, after 12 months playing in the Ligue 1, that potential is coming to light. The midfielder has proven himself so much that other top Ligue 1 clubs like PSG and Olympique Marseille have shown interest in him. Influential journalist Pierrer Menes, after watching Santos play in RCS’ 1-1 draw with Marseille on the weekend, encouraged Paris Saint-Germain to ‘slum it ‘and get serious about signing him. “Andrey Santos is compatible with the game of Luis Enrique,” declared Menes on his popular Youtube channel. “He would have a slightly more defensive role, which would push forward Vitinha, who would then have a better offensive impact on the PSG game. “But will PSG have the intelligence to watch a Strasbourg player? Let me say I’d doubt that…” Maybe Menes makes a good point; if RCS actually owned Santos. But he is still tied to Chelsea, where he is signed till 20230. PSG may shy away from dealing with Strasbourg but they’ll love the opportunity to steal such a prospect from the Blues. As the Parisians make up their mind, the 20-year-old keeps getting visits from scouts representing the biggest clubs in Europe. These scouts have become regulars at Stade de la Meinau, who come to watch the man who scored six goals – out of midfield in 17 Ligue 1 matches. Bundesliga side Bayern Munich have contacted Chelsea about a summer deal. AC Milan, have sent a scout to observe RCS games over the last six weeks with the brief to follow Santos’ progress. “Andrey (Santos) is amazing,” declared Liam Rosenior, RCS’s manager, earlier this season. “It is a great pleasure to work with him. I talked to him a lot this week about his positioning, with the aim that he touches the ball more. “He is in great shape and progressing every day before my eyes. He is a really easy player to coach, who has a great character. I’m really happy for him.” Rosenior’s statement was days before he made Santos captain in the absence of Habib Diarra. This was a significant move on the manager’s part. “He constantly shows professionalism every day in his work, he constantly wants to improve and constantly trains at 100%,” says Rosenior. “There were other players that had a worthy cause to be captain but I felt that Andrey was the right choice.” Santos was ignored in the six months he spent at City Ground. But he has now found Rosenior; a manager who believes in him and trusts him fully. “Andrey is a top player, he is a true professional,” Rosenior has also stated. “He works every day to progress and improve. On the pitch, he plays like a very experienced player, almost like a coach.”
