This article is part of Football FanCast's Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news...

According to Brazilian outlet UOL, Atletico Mineiro are hoping to sign Nathan on a permanent basis from Chelsea.

What's the story?

The 23-year-old joined the Brazilian outfit in July of last year on a season-long loan. That was then extended, with him set to remain with the club until December of this term.

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Now, the Alvinegro want to extend his stay for another six months before signing him on a permanent deal next summer, considering he is clearly not a part of Frank Lampard and the Blues' plans. He is currently worth £810,000 as per Transfermarkt.

The dark side

There are some players who have flourished after being sent out on loan at Chelsea. Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham and Fikayo Tomori, for example, have all benefited from spells away from Stamford Bridge and are now regulars in south-west London, whilst others such as Kevin de Bruyne and Mohamed Salah rediscovered their love of football whilst at Werder Bremen and Fiorentina on a short-term basis respectively.

However, Nathan's case shows the darker side of the club's loan model, with these players failing to live up to expectations as they get moved from club to club, always struggling to settle. This is already the Brazil U20 international's fifth loan spell at just 23.

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Lewis Baker is another in a similar situation. He was full of promise playing for Chelsea's U23s, but he is now on his seventh loan at Fortuna Dusseldorf in the Bundesliga.

The list goes on. Danilo Pantic is on his fourth loan at 22 years of age, whilst Kenedy is also living through a comparable vicious circle. Lucas Piazon, who is now with Rio Ave on loan - the seventh such spell of his career - has even spoken out against the system at Chelsea in the past.

He told The Daily Mail in 2016: "It makes no sense to go on loan all the time. It is not good for any player in my experience — or the experience of the other boys. I don't see it as a positive thing any more. To be in a different place every year is not good for me at 22."

It is hard to disagree with him when you look at how unsettled it can make a player. As he says, moving on so often cannot be healthy, and the frustration is completely understandable. For every Mount, there is a Nathan. This is the dark side of Chelsea's loan system.