Joao Pedro continues to be strongly linked with a move to Barcelona this summer after Chelsea failed to qualify for any European competition, and now Bruno Saltor has backed him to be a success.
It comes just one season after joining Barcelona from Brighton. Pedro completed a £60m move to West London in time to play a part in Chelsea’s Club World Cup triumph. He’s scored 23 goals in 53 games.
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The Brazil international, overlooked by Carlo Ancelotti for this summer’s World Cup squad, has also laid on nine assists. With Robert Lewandowski leaving Barcelona, Deco is looking for a new centre-forward.
Pedro and Julian Alvarez are their main targets, with Deco, Bojan, and a Barca scout travelling to London this week to push for Pedro’s arrival. Now, former Chelsea coach Bruno Saltor has given his verdict.
Bruno Saltor thinks Joao Pedro would thrive at Barcelona
These days, Bruno is part of Roberto De Zerbi’s coaching staff at Tottenham. He spent a year at Chelsea, having followed Graham Potter from Brighton to Stamford Bridge as one of the Englishman’s staff.
Indeed, he actually became interim manager for one game, a 0-0 draw against Liverpool following the sacking of Potter before Frank Lampard returned. He lasted a year on Chelsea’s coaching staff.
Speaking to Jijantes about Pedro, Saltor said the Premier League is a different beast to La Liga and yet, Pedro has sparkled. He believes Pedro has the capability to adapt to life at Barcelona, if he was to go.
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“He’s had a fantastic season, being an important player and scoring goals in crucial moments. I think he’s a very complete player who can adapt to different positions, playing styles, and, of course, to Barcelona.
“As we know, the Premier League is a very physical league, where being a center forward is very difficult.
The centre-backs in England are players who have the same speed as the wingers,” Saltor continued.
“So being a striker in the Premier League is one of the most difficult roles. He’s been doing it for years and performing at a high level,” Saltor reminded, with Pedro having starred for Brighton and Watford.
“That means that when he goes to Spain, well, he’s going to be a player who will surely make a difference. And then the most important thing is that he can make that difference in the Champions League.”
Chelsea’s stance on Joao Pedro’s future differs to Pedro himself
Shortly after the season came to an end, it was reported that Chelsea would not be open to any offers for Pedro. Indeed, Alonso kept his cards close to his chest when asked about Chelsea’s Player of the Season.
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Chelsea won’t even entertain a world-record bid for their star striker. However, any hope that Pedro will be a Chelsea player has quickly diminished, because Pedro reportedly wants to join Barcelona.
Any hope that Alonso’s arrival would convince Chelsea’s best players to stay in West London has clearly not worked with Pedro. He might not be for sale, but Deco has clearly been encouraged to travel across.
With Pedro not attending the World Cup, it is easy to imagine a move earlier on in the window for the striker. But the ball is in Chelsea’s court; the Blues have a contract with Pedro until the summer of 2033.
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