the under-20s were Arthur Gomes and Matheus Oliveira, while Yan and Thaciano came from the B-side; none of them were regularly used, however. Late in the season, prospects like Yuri Alberto and Rodrygo went straight to the main squad from the under-17s. In 2018, Rodrygo came into prominence after becoming a regular starter for the club. Youth graduates like Robson Bambu, Gabriel Calabres, Guilherme Nunes and Matheus Guedes were all promoted from the under-20s, while Diego Pituca came from the B-team. Another youth team players like Victor Yan, Lucas Lourenço and Emerson featured on the bench for some matches, but were later demoted back to their youth sides. Late in the year, Kaio Jorge, a forward from the under-17s, was promoted to the first team. On 16 October 2018, Santos' board opted to cease the activity of the B-team for the 2019 season. During the 2019 campaign, the youth setup had little protagonism in the first team's performance, with only Gustavo Henrique, Lucas Veríssimo and Alison featuring regularly; all of them, however, were already involved in the main squad in the past seasons. Wagner Leonardo, Sandry and Tailson were the only youth graduates to make their first team debuts in that season. 2020s For the 2020 season under Jesualdo Ferreira, more youth graduates were involved in the first team routines, with Kaio Jorge establishing himself as a regular and Renyer making his first team debut. Jesualdo also promoted Ivonei, Anderson Ceará and Alex, while also taking Marcos Leonardo up for trainings. After Jesualdo left and Cuca was appointed manager, Ângelo made his debut as a 15-year-old, becoming the second-youngest player to debut in the club's history. Sandry became a regular starter, while João Paulo and John shared the starting spot. The club also reached the 2020 Copa Libertadores Final, where five youth graduates took part of the club's starting eleven (John, Veríssimo, Alison, Sandry and Kaio Jorge) and another two came in as substitutes (Wellington Tim and Bruno Marques), while the club had 12 players who played for the youth categories among the 23-man matchday squad. For the 2021 campaign, new manager Ariel Holan gave the starting spot to Ângelo, Kaiky and Gabriel Pirani, with Kevin Malthus and Vinicius Balieiro being also regularly used. After Holan resigned, only Pirani featured regularly under subsequent managers Fernando Diniz and Fábio Carille. During the 2022 season, Ângelo, Kaiky, Marcos Leonardo and Lucas Pires