The 19-year-old is currently on loan at Vasco Da Gama

Andrey Santos Girlfriend: Meet Yngryd Freire

19-year-old Chelsea youngster named one of the best prospects in world football, he’s yet to make Blues debut

Chelsea youngster Andrey Santos has been named as one of the best prospects in the world of football.

Andrey Santos, who joined Chelsea for £18million (Daily Mail) from Vasco da Gama in January, is a very exciting emerging talent.

The 19-year-old midfielder has since returned to Vasco da Gama on a short-term loan, but the Blues fanbase can’t wait to see him make a club debut further down the line.

He may not have worn Chelsea colours yet. However, he became a full senior Brazil international last week.

Photo by FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images

ESPN, who run a yearly feature, have named their best footballers aged 21 or under.

Santos has placed 20th on a 39-man list that is topped by Borussia Dortmund and England star Jude Bellingham.

When discussing Santos’ main strengths, they wrote: “With great energy, strength and high levels of technical ability, the 19-year-old can successfully be deployed as a No. 6 defensive midfielder or as a roaming box-to-box midfielder. In fact, his vigorous style makes him more suited to the latter as he is brilliant at driving forward with the ball and timing his runs into the box. Most of his goals originate from picking up rebounds and reading where the ball will drop in the final third.”

If you look back to 2022’s list, Chelsea-owned Callum Hudson-Odoi was the only Blues representative in 39th spot.

Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images

If you study some of the names on ESPN’s 2023 list, Santos is in some great company.

He’s earning some rave reviews for what he’s been doing in South America, so it’ll be interesting to see how he adapts to European football when the chance in England comes.

Santos has recently shared he’s a big admirer of Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez. There is no doubt he’s a great role model for him, too.

Fernandez, who’s only 22 himself, has had an extraordinary rise in the past couple of years. He was learning the game as a youngster in Argentina, but he’s now one of the top midfielders in European football.

We would love to watch Santos go on a similar path.