Man United add Chelsea midfielder to their six-man transfer shortlist | OneFootball

Young Chelsea talent Andrey Santos is on Manchester United's six-man midfielder transfer shortlist for 2026, according to reports.

As reported by talkSPORT, Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim is keen on adding more physicality and pace to his midfield, with uncertainties over some of their current players, such as Kobbie Mainoo, Bruno Fernandes, and Casemiro.

The club are said to have compiled a shortlist of six potential targets, and among them are Chelsea's Santos and former Blues midfielder Conor Gallagher.

The report claims that Manchester United already mentioned the possibility of acquiring the 21-year-old during talks that led to Alejandro Garnacho's transfer to Chelsea for £40m.

IMAGO / Orange Pictures

Santos, obviously, stayed, but there were reportedly other enquiries for the midfielders, including from Bayern Munich and Saudi club Al-Qadsiah.

Chelsea are not interested in selling the Brazil international. Santos is said to consider staying at Stamford Bridge as a priority and is convinced that he will get enough game time under Enzo Maresca to secure a spot in Brazil's squad for the 2026 World Cup.

After returning from an impressive loan spell at Strasbourg, Santos has only had three starts, nine appearances overall, in all competitions for Chelsea this season.

He has played several midfield positions under Maresca, as a number six, a number eight, and even a number 10.

IMAGO / Visionhaus

Despite his versatility, Santos is clearly facing fierce competition for midfield spots at Chelsea, with Moises Caicedo, Enzo Fernandez, and Cole Palmer being some of the first names on the team sheet.

The best way to convince Maresca to use him more is obviously to make an impact whenever he gets his chance, even as a substitute, and he did exactly that recently.

The former Vasco da Gama star made his first goal contribution for Chelsea of the season with an assist to Tyrique George in Wednesday's 5-1 win over Ajax in the Champions League.