Football Season Guide

Serie A
Brazil
Serie A
2023
Santos FC
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Santos FC

In


João Lucas (def) Cuiabá; Joaquim (def) Cuiabá; Raniel (att) Vasco de Gama - return from loan; Lucas Lima (mid) Fortaleza; Vladimir (gk) Avaí; Messias (def) Ceará; Alison (mid) Al-Hazm, SAU; Dodi (mid) Kashiwa Antlers, JAP; Dani Ruiz (mid/att) Milionarios, COL; Stiven Mendoza (att) Ceará;

Out


Vinícius Zanocelo (sp)(mid) Fortaleza - on loan; John (sp)(gk) Internacional; Auro (sp)(def) Ordabasy, KAZ; Madson (r)(def) Athlético PR; Carlos Sanchez (sp)(mid) Peñarol, URU; Bruno Oliveira (sp)(mid) Seoul E-Land; Luan (sp)(mid/att) Corinthians - return from loan; Jhojan Julio (sp)(mid/att) LDU Quito, ECU - return from loan; Rwan Cruz (sp)(att) Vasco - on loan; Brayan Angulo (sp)(att) Emelec, ECU;

Santos finished just 10 points above relegation, which in itself tells a lot about how disappointing it was the season. Peixe had a poor second part of the season. After the very good season with Sampaoli as gaffer, in 2019 (2nd place), Santos has been finishing in charmless mid-table positions. 'Peixe' finished their participation in Campeonato Paulista in the group stage, which was a very poor start of 2023. That failure in regional competition was attenuated by two good wins, one in Brazilian Cup, still in March, and the other one in the first round of Sul-Americana: an away win over Bolivian team Blooming. Odair Hellmann is the new manager for 2023. He is back to the country after two seasons in the Emirates. Odair is known for his two good years with Internacional, in 2018 and 2019, where he used an attractive 4-3-3 formation. Santos had a sensible approach to the transfer market in 2023. They brought two promising defenders from Cuiabá (João Lucas and Joaquim); in midfield there has been two acclaimed returns, in Alison and Lucas Lima, who remind the fans of happier years. However, it has been Dodi the new midfielder with bigger impact, so far. In attack, the irregular agitator Mendoza is a great addition too. Santos looks a more competitive team than recent years, with more options for the key positions which is crucial for the long season they will be facing. Also, the team got rid of unstable and irregular players like Luan, Sanchez , Angulo, Julio or Madson. Santos has been having a lot of injury problems in recent years, and 2023 hasn't been different. 'Peixe' has a total of 7 players in the medical report as they start the last week before Série A begins, all of which are candidates for the starting XI. Winger Soteldo is the biggest name on the squad, but he spent most of 2023 recovering from a chest injury. Also winger, the 18-years old Ângelo is the biggest talent, but still needs a lot of learning, especially in the decisions he tends to make. João Paulo is a highly reliable goalkeeper.

Target


Santos have quality on the squad to fight for the top-6 places, but the tactical, discipline and psychological aspects are still questionable after some irregular seasons.