Manchester United have agreed a deal worth £50m with Chelsea midfielder Andrej Santos as manager Michael Carrick prepares to seal his first appointment as manager. Express Sport understands that Santos is ready to make a permanent move to Old Trafford after talks between United and Chelsea have made significant progress in the past 48 hours.
United have committed to paying an initial fee of £48m, with the potential for a further £2m in add-on fees. Personal terms have already been agreed between the club and the player. As part of the deal, a 10 per cent sell-on clause was included in the contract, ensuring Chelsea would receive a cut of any future transfer fees. His salary is not yet known, but the contract runs until June 2031 and Santos will sign the contract tomorrow (Thursday).
Carrick appears to be targeting a central midfield position as a partner for Brazil international Ederson, who is due to arrive from Atalanta after the World Cup.
It remains to be seen whether his expected arrival will put a damper on United’s coverage of Real Madrid’s Aurelien Tchoameny.
Meanwhile, Santos has been given permission to travel to Manchester for a medical and is now close to completing his move to Old Trafford.
The 22-year-old, manager Todd Boley’s first signing at Stamford Bridge, is likely to fill the void left by Casemiro after his contract expires on June 30.
The Brazilian midfielder made 42 appearances for Chelsea last season, being selected as a rotation option in the squad under managers Enzo Maresca and Liam Rosenior.
It was his first full campaign in England after unstable loan spells with Nottingham Forest and RC Strasbourg.
Santos was included in coach Carlo Ancelotti’s 55-man provisional squad for the World Cup in Brazil in June.
However, Ederson received an emergency call-up due to Wesley’s injury a few days before the start of the tournament, but was left out when the roster was reduced to 26 players.
He is enjoying a period of recovery ahead of the start of pre-season and this will be a welcome change of pace for Carrick as he looks to complete his new signing ahead of warm-up games in Finland, Norway, Sweden and Ireland.
