Andrey Santos played 86 minutes for Brazil in their pre-Olympic qualifier against Ecuador last night.
The midfielder came back from loan at Nottingham Forest earlier in January, but went straight off to join his national Olympic side.
He’s played in all 3 games, picking up more minutes than he had all season. He’s looked great, by all accounts.
Sending him on loan while he’s out there looks tricky, so it will be 6 months at Chelsea by the looks of things. He will at least come back from this tournament in match ready shape – and likely with the the confidence of a few more wins under his belt.
It’s still hard to see him making much of an impact at Chelsea in the remainder of the season, but he will continue to impress scouts ahead of another loan in the summer. Let’s hope this one is better chosen – he can’t afford two wasted years.
