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Joao Pedro saga: Chelsea stance revealed as Barcelona humiliated by club chief

Updated: 25 May 2026 14:56 BST | 5 min read

Joao Pedro, Barcelona, 2025/26

Robin Bairner

Robin Bairner | Chief Editor

Accredited football journalist and editor covering the game since 2006

Joao Pedro continues to be Barcelona’s dream transfer target to replace Robert Lewandowski – but will the Brazil international leave Chelsea?

Lewandowski’s announcement that he would leave Camp Nou at the end of his contract in June sent shockwaves around Barcelona, with the Catalan club suddenly forced to front up to the reality that they face making a massive investment to replace the Pole.

Julian Alvarez of Atletico Madrid was top of their shortlist, but with their La Liga rivals demanding well in excess of €100 million for the veteran forward, that idea appears to have been parked.

Joao Pedro has been shuffled to the top of their revised list of transfer targets – but do Chelsea have anything to fear from Barca?

Chelsea would reject world-record bid for Joao Pedro

Chelsea have made their intentions with Joao Pedro clear: they will not sell.

Transfer insider Ben Jacobs even goes so far as to say the Stamford Bridge club are ready to refuse any type of offer for the 24-year-old former Brighton star.

“Although Barcelona’s interest in Joao Pedro is genuine, and some exploratory talks have taken place, Chelsea are not prepared to sell. There is no price that will change the club’s stance this summer, even a world-record bid,” he reports.

But what are the Blaugrana’s financial capacities, and how much might they be ready to bid for a player with an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €76m.

That’s unclear for the moment, but what does appear to be certain is that Barcelona’s financial power will be insufficient to tempt Chelsea into a sale.

Evidence of this comes from Germany, where Bayern Munich honorary president Uli Hoeness was asked about rumours linking Harry Kane with a move to Barca in a deal that would echo Lewandowski’s switch four years ago.

Asked by Das Erste (via ESPN) if Kane will remain at Bayern, he said: “Yes – and Barcelona have no money anyway.”

The direct and brash manner in which the Barcelona links were dismissed show the true position of the Blaugrana currently.

With the words of Hoeness ringing in their ears, Barca cannot possibly hope to land Joao Pedro, who has been earmarked as a foundation stone for Xabi Alonso’s Chelsea era amid ongoing rumours that Enzo Fernandez will leave.

Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro (right): Chelsea aim to keep superstars

Joao Pedro to Barcelona is ‘really complicated’ – Romano

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has also commented on Joao Pedro’s situation and has said much the same as Hoeness – albeit in a more tactful style.

“Joao Pedro is not going to be at the World Cup, so the negotiations can be different. But in terms of Chelsea's desire, as of today, it's a very high wall around Joao Pedro,” he explained on his YouTube channel.

“It's been a tough season for Chelsea, a very complicated season, three different managers. And so to let Joao Pedro go at this stage of the project with a new coach ambitious like Xabi Alonso incoming seems something really, really complicated.

“Chelsea have absolutely no intention to discuss. And it's not about €90 million, 100 million, 120. It's not about numbers.

“Chelsea want to restart their project with a top coach like Xabi Alonso and with top players like, obviously, Joao Pedro, Cole Palmer, and all the others. So this is going to be the focus.”

With Joao Pedro set to remain at Chelsea, Barcelona are therefore left to ponder who they might sign to provide an adequate replacement for Lewandowski on the cheap.

Their leading targets all look beyond their financial means, and with world-class strikers few and far between, it may be that they are forced to improvise before the summer is out.