Paul Ince has admitted he’s been left ‘baffled’ by Manchester United’s decision to splurge £50 million on Andrey Santos this summer.
Santos completed the switch from Stamford Bridge to Old Trafford earlier this month, with United shelling out £48m upfront and pledging £2m in easily achievable add-ons.
Andrey Santos swaps blue for red
The 22-year-old has featured in both of United’s pre-season outings thus far, but will have to wait until the season-opener away to Hull City on August 22 to make his competitive debut.
Despite only making their move this summer, the Red Devils had had their sights set on Santos for a while, particularly when it became clear he might not be the right fit at Chelsea.
Their midfield pairing of Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo, both of whom commanded transfer fees in excess of £100m, has meant that game time has been increasingly hard to come by for the young Brazilian.
Andrey Santos’ final game for Chelsea:
38 passes attempted
38 passes completed
8 carries
8 duels contested
6 duels won
5 tackles attempted
5 tackles won
1 shot
1 goalCompleted every pass, won every tackle and scored. Imagine selling him… 🤯 pic.twitter.com/zdzNpNxQ3W
— Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) July 13, 2026
The fact that the London outfit have no European action to account for in 2026/2027 means Santos would’ve struggled even more to stake his claim, hence opening the door to a summer transfer.
Andrey Santos in the #UCL 😤 pic.twitter.com/VZzghiLlV5
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) July 9, 2026
What did Ince have to say about Santos?
Reacting to the signing, Ince said (via the Metro): “I think when you look at what Manchester United are trying to do, they obviously need to strengthen in that area.
“Whether [Manuel] Ugarte comes back, I don’t know, but they’ve signed the lad Santos from Chelsea for £50m, which is a lot of money for someone like him. I think the jury’s still out on that one. So to spend £50m on a young central midfield player when you’ve got [Kobbie] Mainoo coming through the ranks kind of baffled me a bit.”
Ince also weighed in on his former club’s acquisition of Youri Tielemans, who joined from Aston Villa after his £35m release clause was activated.
Two midfield additions for @ManUtd:
🤝 Youri Tielemans
🤝 Andrey Santos pic.twitter.com/TAOikoz2oC— Premier League (@premierleague) July 14, 2026
He has yet to join up with the squad due to his involvement in the World Cup until the quarter-finals, but fans are looking forward to seeing him involved in the coming weeks.
Ince said of the Belgian: “Obviously, Tielemans, I think, is a fantastic player. More of a [Bruno] Fernandes type of player, but a very good player.”
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