Now that Andrey Santos is having such a good time in Ligue 1, his struggles at Nottingham Forest seem even more puzzling.
He made just 2 appearances in what was a disaster loan a year ago, mercifully terminated in January. He switched to Strasbourg, and after a period of integration quickly became a key player.
Forest are a stronger side than Strasbourg, but it’s still a mystery he didn’t get more of a kick considering their struggles at that point. That fact shouldn’t hinder a return to Chelsea – although the depth of competition might.
Right now it seems certain that the Brazilian returns at some point and gets into the first team picture. But there’s already issues getting Enzo Fernandez into the team – what chance would Santos have?
He could take up the Conference League and cup minutes that Cesare Casadei is currently getting – but then the Italian would have to be moved on somewhere. The pair seem eternally destined to have their Stamford Bridge futures linked. It always seems there’s only room for one. Enzo, Caicedo, Lavia… the queue is long right now and these guys won’t stay on loan forever.
Sporting directors face Santos vs. Casadei questions
The sporting directors will be watching both with interest – it will be a curious case study of the benefits of different types of development. Casadei gets limited first team minutes but can impress his manager up close.
Santos gets to be the star, but in a smaller team further from the limelight. Both setups have their advantages, but their downsides too.
There are some big squad building decisions in midfield coming next summer, and each and every appearance counts for these guys. The race is on to take one of the precious squad places next year and beyond.
