Report: Wonderkid to follow Andrey Santos’ path to first team action after position change | OneFootball

Chelsea surprised everyone this week with the news that came out late on Thursday that they had agreed a deal to sign Geovany Quenda from Sporting CP.

The young winger has been bought for £40m, with the Blues securing a discount because they were happy to let the 17 year old stay in Lisbon for another year to develop.

The Athletic’s piece on the deal is full of really interesting details as you’d expect. But perhaps the most interesting was actually the explanation of where this leaves Kendry Paez.

As well as the wingers already on the books, Estevao Willian and Paez will arrive this summer to give us a ridiculous number of options. But according to the Atheltic, Paez won’t be crowded out – he will instead be seen as “an understudy for Enzo Fernandez.”

He’s yet to play too many games centrally, mainly because he’s simply so young. But he’s done it before, and it seems like the plan will be to develop him more and more to play centrally.

Strasbourg loan seems perfect platform for Paez to learn new role

Kendry Paez playing for Ecuador. (Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images)

It won’t be an easy adaptation for him – he’s will arrive having only just turned 18, moving across the world and playing in the notoriously physical Premier League. Moving centrally sounds like quite the task. But we like the idea tha

Given all that and his age, perhaps a loan out somewhere is the right move. Our sister club Strasbourg could be the perfect platform for him to adjust to life on a new continent and in a new position. Sitting around on the bench at Chelsea is not going to do much for his development.

It’s done wonders for Andrey Santos, who is now ready to step up to our first team – could Paez be next?