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August 09 2024
Pedro Neto: Chelsea have locked in a deal to sign Pedro Neto from Wolverhampton Wanderers for €60 million (£51.4 million; $65.5 million), with an extra €3 million in potential bonuses. Pedro Neto will be undergoing his medical soon.
The 24-year-old winger made 20 Premier League appearances for Wolves last season, despite dealing with two hamstring injuries. Even with those setbacks, Pedro Neto managed to score twice and assist nine times. He returned to full fitness by the season's end and represented Portugal in the European Championship, featuring in all their group-stage matches, though he didn’t play in the knockout rounds.
Neto came to Wolves from Braga in 2019 and has since featured 135 times for the club. However, due to injuries, he has not played more than 25 games in a season since the 2020-21 campaign.
Neto's Wolves contract runs until the summer of 2027, after which he signed a new five-year deal in March 2022. That summer, Arsenal were in talks to sign Neto, as the Portuguese was their top target if ivory winger Nicolas Pepe left the club. Pepe joined Nice on loan later in the transfer window, but Neto remained at Wolves.
Back in February, The Athletic noted that Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City, and Newcastle United were all interested in Neto, who had an impressive season with Wolves. He then suffered a second hamstring injury the following month, causing him to miss nine Premier League matches and only return as a substitute in Wolves' final game of the season.
This summer, Chelsea have so far signed Tosin Adarabioyo from Fulham, Omari Kellyman from Aston Villa, Marc Guieu from Barcelona, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall from Leicester City, Renato Vega from Basel, Caleb Wiley of Atlanta United and Aaron Anselmino of Boca Juniors. They have also agreed a deal to sign striker Samu Omorodion from Atletico Madrid for €40m.
Why, therefore, is Chelsea pursuing Neto?
Chelsea has been actively searching for a new left-winger to boost Enzo Maresca’s attack all summer. Liam Twomey, Chelsea’s correspondent, notes that their top target was Nico Williams, a standout from Euro 2024.
However, they knew Williams was likely to stay in Spain, either by moving to Barcelona or sticking with Athletic Bilbao.
Williams' €58m buyout clause, which according to La Liga rules must be paid in a lump sum, was another hurdle. Chelsea are paying slightly more for Neto, but his €60m initial fee could be rolled into a more favourable payment structure with Wolves.
Neto, a left-footed player, is not as naturally fit on the left side, but he fits the profile of a fast, skilful, direct-running winger with an eye for goal. The fact that he has experience playing across the attacking line for Wolves will give Maresca more versatility in his attacking combinations.
Muscle injuries are a serious concern for Neto, who has missed 102 games over the last four seasons, but while he has proven his talent in the Premier League, he is only 24 and cannot be expected to play every game given the depth of options in Maresca's squad at Stamford Bridge.
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