Manchester United have picked up the phone and called around about Chelsea midfielder Andrey Santos. According to Fabrizio Romano, the Red Devils made an initial inquiry to figure out whether the Brazilian is actually gettable this summer. And Chelsea’s response? They didn’t hang up immediately.
Romano reports that while United haven’t submitted a formal bid or made an official approach to the club, they have had preliminary talks with Santos’s camp to see if he’d be interested in a move to Old Trafford. That part is usually the easy one. The harder part is getting Chelsea to play ball.
But here’s the thing. Chelsea reportedly do not consider Santos completely untouchable this summer. That’s a pretty significant stance for a 22-year-old who arrived with serious buzz and has shown flashes of being exactly the kind of midfield presence modern teams crave. He wins the ball back, he carries it through traffic, he shows up in both boxes. He’s not a finished product, but the raw material is there.
Michael Carrick is rebuilding United’s midfield with an eye on athleticism and energy. They already brought in Ederson from Atalanta for about £35 million. The idea would be to pair Santos with Ederson and give United a midfield that doesn’t get run through the way it did last season. Think more legs, less standing around watching transitions happen.
The Brazilian connection matters too. Santos and Ederson know each other from the national team setup, and Carrick apparently likes the idea of building a partnership that already has some chemistry. That kind of thinking makes sense if you’re trying to fast-track a midfield rebuild in one window.
United have been burned in this market already. They lost out on Mateus Fernandes, who went to Tottenham in a big money deal. They also got beat to Sandro Tonali by Spurs, even though City and Arsenal were sniffing around too. Losing multiple targets to the same club stings, and it’s probably why United are moving more quietly on Santos rather than letting it become a public bidding war.
Other names are still on the list. Alex Scott at Bournemouth has admirers inside the club. Bruno Guimaraes has been linked with a move away from Newcastle and United have checked in there too. But Santos feels like the most realistic option right now, especially if Chelsea are genuinely willing to listen.
A lot depends on what Chelsea consider a substantial proposal. That number isn’t public yet, but you can bet United are trying to figure it out before they commit to anything official. The window is still open and United are expected to make at least one more midfield addition before it closes.
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