The race for Andrey Santos’ signature has ended, with Vasco De Gama announcing that the Newcastle United target has joined Chelsea.
It has been confirmed that Chelsea has completed the signing of Andrey from Brazilian club Atletico Mineiro. The Blues had been reportedly close to a deal for the player for some time.
Chelsea have not yet announced the signing of Andrey on its official channels, likely due to the recent passing of Gianluca Vialli. However, the deal has been confirmed by Atletico Mineiro.
Newcastle United, who were reportedly interested in him, will be extremely disappointed by the news. The Magpies reportedly pursued the player for some time and thought they had him under contract at one point.
Bailey spoke about Newcastle’s disappointment on the Talking Transfers Podcast:
“They thought they had this boy. Coming from Vasco De Gama. He is one of the best young players in Brazil and they saw him as like a baby Bruno. They thought Bruno Guimaraes would be the ideal person to bring him on. That’s the ponds Newcastle are in now, there’s a lot of big fish in there, it’s a tough one for them, but Chelsea are a tough club to turn down,”
Newcastle does not lack resources following the Saudi takeover, but they do not yet have the pull power that clubs like Chelsea, Manchester City, and others do. However, given the club’s rapid progress and the owners’ ambitions, it will not be surprising if they follow in the footsteps of Manchester City and become a dominant force in the Premier League in the coming years.