After a wasted first half of the season sitting on the bench at Nottingham Forest, €14m valued (TM) Andrey Santos found himself in a similar situation at Strasbourg to start with after making the switch in January.
But the on loan Chelsea midfielder has found his place in the side now, and has started 3 games in a row, without yet tasting defeat.
Speaking in their press conference today, the former Vasco wonderkid revealed that this breakthrough was no coincident – he had been studying his new team since his move was announced, and was now reaping the rewards of his hard work:
“When I learned that I was going to be loaned to Strasbourg, I was in the Brazilian side. I started watching matches and all I wanted was to find time to play again and be able to play regularly,” he explained.
"When I learned that I was going to be loaned to Strasbourg, I was with the Brazilian national team. I started watching Racing's matches and all I wanted was to have playing time again, to be able to play regularly."#RCSASDR pic.twitter.com/w8iQd0hjoc
— Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace English (@RCSA_English) April 11, 2024
He also noted how working with manager Patrick Vieira was helping him develop, just as Chelsea would have hoped when selecting this loan:
“The coach is a reference for me, he is one of the best midfielders in history. He asks me to play simple and bring the balls cleanly forward.”
Attention to detail
We absolutely love to hear about players doing things like this. It’s the sign of a top mentality, and it’s a trait which can be hugely influential on whether they make it to the top or not. Santos could be forgiven for being a little jaded after a disastrous first half of the season, but instead he’s put his all into making this new loan work out, and his hard work is being rewarded.
It’s a shame that the season is coming to a close, but would anyone rule out Santos being sent back for another go at Strasbourg next season? He seems to have won over Vieira and even the fans, so if we want to guarantee good minutes for the Brazilian next season, it would seem like a wise idea.
