Chema Andrés Scout Report At Brighton 2026/2027: The Seagulls' Next £100m Midfielder? - Player Analysis

Chema Andrés is in just his second full season of senior professional football, and he's already one of the hottest midfield talents in the world.

It's no surprise that Brighton & Hove Albion, often regarded as one of the smartest clubs in the transfer market, snapped him up for €22m on deadline day.

Andrés spent last season in the Bundesliga, at VfB Stuttgart.

His 41 appearances in the year with Die Roten caught the eye across Europe.

There were links to Real Madrid, where he'd been developing for seven years as a youth player, joining as a 13-year-old, while there were also links to some of the biggest clubs in England.

The Valencia-born midfielder has already drawn comparisons to compatriots Sergio Busquets and Rodri in his short career, to give an early insight into the type of player he is.

Brighton have been the perfect development environment for midfielders (and other positions) in recent seasons.

Alexis Mac Allister joined for €8m, became the first active Brighton player to win a FIFA World Cup and was then sold for €42m.

Moisés Caicedo joined for €28.2m and was sold for €116m to Chelsea just two and a half years later.

More recently, Carlos Baleba was sold to Manchester United this summer for €75.9m, having joined in 2023 for €27m.

This Chema Andrés scout report and player analysis will look at how Andrés fits into Premier League football, what he'll bring to the Seagulls midfield and where he'll need to improve to become the next midfield star on the south coast.

Chema Andrés Positioning

Andrés is strictly a central player.

He can play as a defensive midfielder or as a No. 8, but he lacks the mobility to play further up the pitch or in wide areas in the senior game despite his technical ability.

At 6'4", Andrés is tall for a midfielder.

He's also still fairly slight in his build, giving him a long, lanky frame.

Chema Andrés Heat Map 2025/2026

As we can see from the heat map above, the Spanish midfielder mainly operates in the middle third of the pitch, doing some defensive work in his own box but making his way into the opposition one less (ranking in the 61st percentile among midfielders in Europe's top-five leagues, per FotMob).

This is no surprise given mobility is one of his issues.

He very much is in the mould of a Busquets.

He's not a ground eater; he won't cover large amounts of space in a short space of time.

His game is much more about positioning, being in the right areas to sweep up danger and using his long legs to dispossess his opponents.

Stuttgart, under Sebastian Hoeneß, used a mixture of 4-2-3-1 and 3-4-2-1 formations last season.

In both cases, Andrés would play in a midfield double pivot, usually alongside Angelo Stiller.

He played almost 2,000 minutes in all competitions last term, despite it being his first in senior football.

All stats presented in this article are sourced via FotMob, with percentiles for midfielders in Europe's top-five leagues.

Chema Andrés In-Possession Style Of Play

Let's start with Chema Andrés' on-the-ball game.

If I had one word to describe Andrés with the ball at his feet, it'd be 'safe'.

That doesn't mean he doesn't give the ball away or try to be expansive in his play.

He's just someone who's more disciplined in his play rather than one who tries to be expansive and force the issue.

His 42.52 successful passes per 90 ranks him in the 74th percentile, and his 85% success rate is evidence that he is safe on the ball, but it also shows that he is heavily involved when his team does have the ball.

One of his biggest strengths is that he's always showing for the ball and always ready to receive it.

His job in possession is to receive the ball from the defenders or goalkeeper and then get it to the players who are going to create danger.

He is mainly comfortable receiving the ball in two areas.