Manchester United is about to spend 50 million pounds on a midfielder who started 13 games last season for a Chelsea team that finished 10th. And two of the club’s all-time greats are not hiding their concern.
Andrey Santos is expected to officially sign with United on Friday after passing his medical, according to transfer insider Fabrizio Romano. The Brazilian will join on a deal through 2031 with an option year. The total package is around 50 million pounds. But not everyone at Old Trafford is celebrating.
Butt: ‘Nothing stands out’
Former United midfielder Nicky Butt came out swinging in an interview with Paddy Power. He said flatly that nothing about Santos jumps off the screen as special.
“I’ve seen him play a few times but nothing stands out that makes you go, ‘Wow, he’s got great ability on the ball or he’s a powerhouse,'” Butt said. He noted that if United were paying 25-30 million, sure, it’s a squad move. But at 50 million, this guy has to start and produce right away.
Butt pointed out that other midfield targets who moved elsewhere this summer — Elliot Anderson, Mateus Fernandes, Sandro Tonali — have already proven themselves in the Premier League. Santos has barely played 10 games total in England’s top flight.
“It’s a strange one,” Butt said. “It’s not one I’m jumping around going, ‘What a signing, I’m really happy with it.'”
He added that if United turns around and also signs a 100-million-pound midfielder, he’d understand the Santos deal as a long-term development play. But if Santos is thrown straight into the deep end, that’s a problem. “United haven’t got time to let people settle in for a year or two. They have to hit the ground running.”
Scholes: ‘Why are Chelsea selling him?’
Paul Scholes was similarly unimpressed. On The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast, he asked the obvious question: if Santos is so good at 22 years old, why would Chelsea let him go?
“I don’t think there’s going to be a lot of excitement about it is there? Put it that way,” Scholes said. He noted that other targets like Bruno Guimaraes or Sandro Tonali have moved elsewhere, and Adam Wharton from Crystal Palace might still be a possibility. But he sounded skeptical that Santos moves the needle for a club that just qualified for the Champions League and will be playing three games a week.
“It’s going to be awful without these players,” Scholes said. He also hinted that United’s ownership might see Santos more as a sellable asset than a difference-maker. “But Manchester United buying players as a sell-on value? We need players for now.”
The Red Devils need at least two, maybe three, new faces in midfield this summer. They’ve already decided not to overpay for stars like Elliot Anderson or Sandro Tonali. So they’re betting big on potential over proven production. Whether that bet pays off or backfires is a question only the next few months will answer. But the old guard at Old Trafford is already bracing for the worst.
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