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Chelsea looking to hijack Newcastle in race for £60m Brighton star
Chelsea are plotting to hijack Newcastle’s move for Joao Pedro this summer, with the Blues now entering the race for the Brighton and Brazil forward according to the Sun. Pedro is tipped to leave the Amex Stadium this summer and has been the subject of talks between Brighton and Newcastle.
Newcastle are reportedly planning a £60m bid for the player, after his representatives indicated that he wanted to play Champions League football. The Magpies are known to be long term admirers of the player, having narrowly missed out on signing him from Watford a few years ago.
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe remains keen on the player but will have to move quickly as Chelsea has now entered the fray. As it stands, Chelsea has not yet entered formal negotiations with Brighton but have held internal talks about bidding for the player.
Blues boss Enzo Maresca has notified the Chelsea hierarchy that Pedro is a player high on his list should the club fail to secure the signing of Dortmund winger Jamie Gittens. Chelsea have already signed a striker in Liam Delap from Ipswich, but the Blues are in search of more cover in the wide areas following the decision to not make Jadon Sancho’s loan permanent.
Blues keen on Pedro
Maresca lifted the lid on the club’s plans for more attacking reinforcements. Speaking to the media following Chelsea’s 2-0 win over LAFC in their Club World Cup opener, Maresca said: “Jadon [Sancho] is not with us so for sure that is a position we need to do something. We have Noni [Madueke], Pedro [Neto] and Ty[rique George] only as the proper wingers. So something, for sure, is going to happen.”
Brighton are willing to cash in on Pedro after he was dropped for the last two games of the season by Fabian Hurzeler. That followed a high profile training-ground bust-up with team-mate Jan Paul van Hecke.
The Seagulls have already signed who many believe to be a replacement for Pedro in the form of Greek striker Charalampos Kostoulas.
