Andrey Santos won’t play alongside Casemiro for Man Utd, but his Brazil debut had a strong Man Utd flavour to it.
With six caps to his name, Man Utd have signed an exciting player in Andrey Santos, who made his Brazil debut in March 2023.
Aged just 18 at the time, it was the next step in the rapid rise for Santos, who had been signed by Christopher Vivell for Chelsea earlier that year.
His Brazil debut came in midfield alongside Casemiro, who was in the middle of a brilliant debut season for Man Utd, and it came against a familiar face to Man Utd fans.
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Andrey Santos’ Brazil debut against Morocco
Santos made his Brazil debut in a rematch of this year’s World Cup, but Morocco emerged victorious that day by a score of 2-1.
Casemiro scored Brazil’s only goal, while Santos played 65 minutes and struggled to get up to the pace of the game at the time.
It didn’t come as a surprise, because he was still playing for Vasco da Gama, as Chelsea had loaned him back for the season after signing him in January.
He created one chance and had a shot on target, but completed just 13 passes in 65 minutes as he was completely taken out of the game.
Despite his struggles, Santos’ style of play was on full display, as he played line-breaking passes and didn’t shirk the responsibility at such a young age.
He kept trying things with the ball without losing his defensive assignment, and it was the sign of a player who belonged at that level, even if he was raw at the time.
Santos came up against Noussair Mazraoui
Lining up against Santos that day was Noussair Mazraoui, who was still a Bayern Munich player.
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Mazraoui started as the left-back, which means he was up against Santos, who started on the right side of a midfield trio consisting of Casemiro and Lucas Paqueta.
The roles are reversed now, with Casemiro not his teammate anymore, and Mazraoui playing alongside him, and Santos is also a much better player.
Of course, there is still a vast room to improve, but if he can convert the glimpses he showed on his Brazil debut into a consistent level of play, then United will have signed a bargain.
His idol is Casemiro, and he’ll now get the opportunity to succeed him at the biggest club in England.
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