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£18m Chelsea loanee the best in Europe’s top five leagues for one impressive stat this season

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Chelsea had well over 20 players leave the club in the summer transfer window, whether that be permanently or temporarily, and one of them appears to be finding his feet.

Enzo Maresca had a really difficult decision to make in the summer transfer window after making over ten new signings, as there was no room for a number of previously key players.

Raheem Sterling was wanted by Maresca, but there was no chance of him staying due to there being too many other players at Chelsea at the time.

Ben Chilwell also suffered due to the overcrowding. He was left out of the squad and trained away from the first team for a good while, but things have now changed for him.

However, one of the club’s youngsters had no issue with leaving on loan this summer as he’s taken the opportunity of regular first-team football with both hands.

£18m Chelsea loanee has the most goals of any central midfielder in Europe’s top five leagues this season

The likes of Willian Estevao and Kendry Paez have been causing excitement at Chelsea after putting pen to paper on moves to Stamford Bridge.

Both South Americans have a very bright future ahead of them having already shown they have what it takes to succeed in senior football.

Another young player who’s making a name for himself over in France is Andrey Santos.

RC Strasbourg Alsace v Angers SCO - Ligue 1 McDonald's
Photo by Marcio Machado/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images

The Brazilian is currently playing for Strasbourg in Ligue 1 and leads the way for an impressive stat when you consider he’s a central midfielder.

According to WhoScored, Santos is the highest scoring central midfielder in Europe’s top five leagues.

Andrey Santos’ time at Strasbourg so far

Andrey Santo is only 20 years of age, but he’s already spent time on loan at three clubs, including Strasbourg, since joining for £18 million.

The central midfielder already has three goals to his name in four games this season, which is quite astonishing when you consider the fact he’s operating in a deep role.

Interestingly, Chelsea fans were all amazed by Santos’ recent performance for Strasbourg against Lille, in which he scored a goal and put in an impressive performance.

It remains to be seen as to whether Santos has the quality to challenge the likes of Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandes for a spot in the Chelsea side, especially as he was given the opportunity in pre-season and clearly deemed not ready by Enzo Maresca.