Deivid Washington’s return to Brazil has not gone as planned.
After joining Santos on loan from Chelsea earlier this year, the 20-year-old striker has yet to live up to expectations. He’s featured in 14 matches so far, scoring just once and starting only three times.
Deivid rejoined Santos on February 20th but didn’t make his debut until March 9th due to international duty at the South American U20 Championship.
Since then, he has mostly been used as a substitute – with 11 of his 14 appearances coming off the bench. His only goal came in a 2–1 home defeat to Red Bull Bragantino on April 27th.
The striker’s role has been limited despite the inconsistent form of Tiquinho Soares, who has six goals and three assists in 24 matches.
Even when fans pushed for Deivid to start, the coaching staff led by Cléber Xavier gave him only limited opportunities. The former Vila Belmiro prospect is now hoping for a better run in the second half of the season.
Santos director of football Alexandre Mattos recently addressed the squad’s struggles, as quoted by UOL, suggesting that restoring player confidence is one of the club’s main concerns – and Deivid is among those affected:
“We believe in human-centred management. We have good players. There’s huge expectation around them, and at times they’re just trying to adapt and build confidence. Right now, we really need to get a few players back on track — that’s the biggest challenge at the moment.”
Deivid’s next chance to impress could come on July 13th, when Santos host Palmeiras in the 13th round of the Brazilian Championship.