Revealed: How Chelsea are benefitting from Andrey Santos' failed Nottingham Forest loan move
Cameron Smith
- 12 Nov 2023 14:32 GMT
- 3 min read
Nottingham Forest are reportedly paying Chelsea “a financial penalty” whenever Andrey Santos is not selected despite being fully fit.
The young Brazilian midfielder joined Steve Cooper’s side on loan during the summer transfer window, but Forest signed both Ibrahim Sangare and Nicolas Dominguez on Transfer Deadline Day, which pushed Santos down the pecking order.
So far this season, Santos has played just seven minutes of Premier League action for Nottingham Forest, which is the least of any player in their 27-man senior squad.
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Those seven minutes came as a late substitute in their 3-0 loss to Liverpool in October, while his only other appearance was back in August. Santos played 90 minutes as Forest were knocked out of the Carabao Cup after a 1-0 defeat against Burnley.
Now, The Mirror have reported that Nottingham Forest are paying “a financial penalty” to Chelsea every time Santos is not selected despite being match-fit.
Furthermore, it has been revealed that Chelsea are set to discuss Santos’ future at the City Ground with Forest in the coming weeks, ahead of potentially activating a break clause in the loan deal during the January window.
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Santos to leave Nottingham Forest in January?
Santos was close to joining Ligue 1 giants Olympique Lyonnais in the summer, but a move didn’t materialise and he signed for Forest on loan instead. Fellow Chelsea youngster Diego Moreira ended up joining Lyon on loan, although he has only mustered two league appearances so far.
According to The Mirror, Chelsea were reassured that Santos would be given a chance in the first-team soon, but that promise has not yielded any results, with Santos not even included in Forest’s matchday squad for their game away to West Ham United on November 12.
Santos is yet to make his competitive debut for Chelsea, having rejoined Vasco da Gama on loan after signing for the Blues in January, although he did feature in their pre-season tour of the United States of America.
