Joao Pedro
Another day and another blow to Newcastle United's summer transfer plans. The decision makers inside St James' Park are continuing to keep calm and very much carrying on but missing out on Brighton's Joao Pedro means a familiar feeling of disappointment has swept Tyneside.
The Brazilian ultimately has his heart set on Chelsea, just as Bryan Mbeumo only wanted Manchester United and just as Dean Huijsen only fancied Real Madrid. Newcastle are targeting the best of the best but coming up short against established, wealthy rivals.
Pedro's move to Chelsea is a fascinating one. Just as the Blues' transfer strategy as a whole is proving incredibly intriguing.
Should the attacker become the latest Brighton employee to make the Stamford Bridge switch, he will join Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, Pedro Neto, Noni Madueke, Nicolas Jackson, Liam Delap, Marc Guiu and Tyrique George in battling it out for a spot in Enzo Maresca's forward line.
To add, Chelsea also have Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernandez, Andre Santos and Estevao as options at the top end of the pitch. That's without even mentioning the likes of Raheem Sterling, Joao Felix, Christopher Nkunku and Mykhailo Mudryk, who all cost huge sums of money and are now out on the scrapheap.
In pointing this fact out on social media over the weekend, I was met with shouts of 'stop crying' from Chelsea fans, while others pointed out that Newcastle simply 'have no pull'. That last point, of course, is not true but Pedro's move speaks to the issues the Magpies are still facing in luring players to St James' Park.
Chelsea may be stockpiling attacking talent but the prospect of living in London, on huge wages, remains an attractive proposition for players such as Pedro. Newcastle may be able to offer more guaranteed minutes and a clear pathway but are still unable to replicate certain benefits the west London outfit can offer.
Pedro arriving on Tyneside would have seen him compete with Alexander Isak for a starting spot through the middle, while speculation has been rife Howe could tinker with his trusted 4-3-3 formation to potential make room for two central options in attack.
Unfortunately, we likely now will never know how Pedro would fare in these parts after Newcastle fell flat in their pursuit of the 23-year-old for the second time in three years. The north east outfit have done little wrong in their two chases for his signature but on this occasion have simply been trumped due to factors outside their control.
Pedro will arrive at Chelsea uncertain of quite how many first-team minutes he will receive. For Newcastle, it is back to the drawing board in the hope they can find other top targets who have their heart set on playing at St James' Park.
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