Scholes and Butt cast doubt on United's £50m Santos deal as medical takes place

Manchester United are closing in on a £50m deal for Chelsea midfielder Andrey Santos, with the 22-year-old undergoing his medical on Friday — but the move has drawn scepticism from two of the club’s most celebrated former players.

Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt both raised concerns about Santos’ readiness for a starting role at Old Trafford, questioning the timing and profile of the signing. Speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast, Scholes pointed to the Brazilian’s limited Premier League experience: “Where’ve they seen him play enough games? United aren’t in the position to be buying players for the future at this point.”

Butt echoed those reservations, adding: “He’s young and he’s for the future. It’s a surprise because we’ve been looking at big hitters coming in but we’re looking at his potential. The big thing for me is if he’s been brought in to come and start for us, United and Carrick don’t have time to let people bed in.”

Santos made 43 appearances across all competitions for Chelsea last season — a notable return given he was competing for minutes against Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo, a midfield pairing worth in excess of £200m. He also spent five months on loan at Nottingham Forest in the first half of the 2023/24 season.

The Santos deal is expected to form part of a double midfield overhaul at Old Trafford, with compatriot Ederson also understood to be close to joining in a combined outlay approaching £100m. United manager Michael Carrick is driving the recruitment push as the club looks to reshape its engine room ahead of the new season.

Whether Santos arrives as a starter or a longer-term project remains the central point of debate — and with Scholes and Butt publicly unconvinced, the pressure on Carrick to justify the investment will be significant from the moment the deal is confirmed.