Playing for Chelsea is the dream for a lot of players. One of the biggest clubs in the world, previous Champions League winners, and one of the most successful Premier League teams ever. Chelsea is a club that really does have a lot of pull.
Well, the insane wads of cash that the recruitment team can throw at players help too, but at least Chelsea is finally on the rise, so we can look past that.
Anyway, Andrey Santos is a player who, this season, feels like a new signing after his loan to Strasbourg was successful. He isn't a new signing, but after three loan spells, the Brazil international is finally ready for his Chelsea breakthrough.
That's assuming he doesn't make a move away this month, of course.
Andrey Santos reveals why he wanted to leave Chelsea
Andrey Santos made a brutally honest claim to the media recently when speaking about his Chelsea journey so far. When he first arrived as a youngster, he didn't feel good enough to play for the club, hence why it took him some time and some spells away from the club to properly adapt.
In his own words, Santos said: “I arrived very young, I went straight to the pre-season with Chelsea and it was a reality shock. I came home thinking I didn't know how to play football, because of the difference in intensity, in game rhythm. I did well in preseason, but I chose to be loaned."
That's interesting, and it's really telling not just of Santos' mentality at a young age, but also how he views Chelsea as a club. He wants to keep to high standards for the sake of Chelsea and if he can't, he doesn't mind being loaned out.
It shows that Santos doesn't let his ego get in the way. It might be stereotypical to suggest that young players who sign for big clubs can get an ego, but unfortunately this is sometimes true.
Not for Santos, though.
Santos hints at having imposter syndrome when he first arrived for Chelsea. Rather than play through this and risk falling further and further away from his dream, Santos was honest with himself and Chelsea, and now he's reaping all of the rewards.
So far this season, Santos has made three appearances in the Premier League. He's yet to make his first start of the season, but the feeling is that it can't be too far away now. Having played a solid 73 minutes for Brazil, he's certainly the next big player to watch.