Club boss explains reason for benching Chelsea’s Brazilian signing

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Nottingham Forest boss, Steve Cooper has opened up on the lack of game time that Andrey Santos has suffered since he joined his side in the summer.

Santos, who was signed by Chelsea over the summer, sealed a season-long loan transfer to Forest this season, despite receiving numerous offers from other clubs.

The Brazilian has however not played a single minute for Cooper’s side in the Premier League since the move, which has raised concerns amongst fans of Chelsea, but the Forest boss insists he has plans for the 19-year-old.

Andrey Santos (Photo: Chelsea FC)

“He’s been good. He’s obviously a really good young player,” Cooper said of Santos.

“I had a really good chat with Chelsea (about him) this week. I didn’t realise some stuff had been written about him.

“There’s a lot of new players here and we’re really trying to get the balance right in integrating all the players at the right time, while trying to perform as best we can in every single game to get the results we want. That’s a real process.

“With young players, sometimes it can take longer than others to settle in. I’m not saying he’s not, it’s just circumstantial at the moment in some of the games.”