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Convincing Myself That Arsenal SHOULD Sign Pedro Neto

Pedro Neto is one of the most exciting players in the Premier League, and one who seems to be linked with a move to N5 in every transfer window that passes us by. Here, I make the case of why singing the electric wide man WOULD be a good idea for the club this summer.

Let’s start this by outlining the big reason why Arsenal shouldn’t sign Neto. The injuries. Everyone knows this by now about the player, that no matter how talented, he just can’t stay fit. In the last two seasons alone, he has missed 47 games, showing he is only available about 50% of total games in a season. We know with recent signings such as Rice and Havertz, Arteta values availability greatly and this would certainly go against the grain, but that being said his ability on the pitch just cannot be ignored, so can an exception be made? Let’s see.

Pedro Neto

Credit: Wolves.co.uk (Photo by Jack Thomas – WWFC/Wolves via Getty Images)

1. He plays more often than our current squad players

In the 23/24 season, Pedro Neto played Premier League 1519 minutes. Combined, Eddie Nketiah, Reiss Nelson and Emile Smith-Rowe played 1672 minutes, if Neto was to come in as a squad player, he possibly could take all of those minutes, and would likely contribute more. He got 11 goal contributions compared to the aforementioned Arsenal trio’s 8. The caveat being you don’t know when he is going to be available, and at Wolves he is on the pitch whenever possible, which is unlikely at Arsenal given our other options, which leads me nicely onto my second point…

2. We can manage his workload much better

I remember travelling home from an Arsenal game on a coach, watching Wolves play Newcastle on my phone, and seeing Neto carry his team from one box to the other at full speed over and over and over again, before snap. Hamstring gone. This is what he does for Wolves, who often look to play on the break, whereas at Arsenal, how often do we get those big transition opportunities? Maybe only once a game? We play in small spaces, with a lot less big sprints, keeping him fresh for the one big sprint which could win us the game. 

At Wolves, he also is arguably their best player, so if he is fit, he plays, but at Arsenal in a 3-game week, maybe he starts one of those games, and having that sort of squad role could save his career. 

3. Perfect rotation option on either flank

Signing a rotation option for Bukayo Saka is not an easy feat. Who would want that job knowing you probably won’t get to play all that often? But having a player totally adept playing on either flank gives the player much more opportunity to play, if Arsenal were to side a winger, this is surely a requirement, and Neto ticks that box perfectly. 

4. He is a tactical weapon

Pace kills teams. Look at what he did against Manchester City when Wolves beat them earlier in the year, speeding away from multiple players starting near the halfway line before squaring the ball for a Wolves goal. When Martinelli isn’t on the pitch for us, speed is something we clearly miss. Bringing it on against tired defences is game changing, and a player who has the tools to hurt Manchester City is a thumbs up in my book. 

Neto registered 0.53 assists per 90 this season, a number in the 99th percentile for wingers, and an assist that stood out to me was a cross from the left hand side along the floor against Liverpool. This year we saw time and time again our number 11 get to the byline and have to put a weak foot cross into the box, but with a left-footed speedster on that side this would become a strong foot cross, and we know Arsenal love to score from a cutback. Neto assisting Ødegaard could be something to get used to. 

He is also handy on set-pieces, something Nico Jover would love I am sure!

5. The profile fits

At 24, with a ton of Premier League experience, it’s easy to see him fitting into the squad. Also being Portuguese, there’s already a whole host of Portuguese speakers in the team, and he already feels like he could be best friends with Martinelli and Fabio Vieira. 

6. Lack of other options

Arsenal have tried to sign another wideman for years now. Raphina, Mudryk and Neto previously have all passed us by, it seems to be a market with very limited players at the level. Nico Williams is one option, but he allegedly wants a king’s ransom in wages. Another player with electric pace who can play either side is Karim Adeyemi, but he’s only registered 7 goal contributions this season. At 22, under Arteta who has a great record improving wide forwards, maybe the Dortmund man could develop into a star. Beyond that, who else is there? I can’t think of any with league experience, maybe Simon Adingra at Brighton, or Crysencio Summerville of Leeds, but neither boast the proven track record of Pedro Neto. 

On the other side of things, besides injuries, another concern with the Wolves number 7 is his goal record. He has only managed 14 goals in 135 appearances for his current club. Could this be simply that he is his side’s prime creator in a team which struggles to create chances. Seeing as the Wanderers have only scored 81 goals in the past 2 seasons this is entirely plausible. With the Arteta magic and a team which scores for fun, would these numbers improve? I’m willing to bet yes. 

Reportedly, Neto’s asking price has been set at £60 million, and with Wolves’ FFP position, they could need to sell this summer. Given his issues with availability, will a team be willing to put up that much money? It’s very likely nobody chooses to take the risk, and if so what happens? Do Wolves A) keep the player and look to sell others or B) drop their asking price. If the answer is B, at what point would you enter the room? £50m? £40m?

Given the fact that if he had no injury problems Pedro Neto would likely be an £80m+ player, but if he is only available 50% of the time, is half price £40 million a good deal? That’s where I would look to do a deal if I were Arsenal. 

What about you? How much would you be willing to pay for Neto? Or would you just avoid at all costs, and if so who would you get instead?

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2 Responses to Convincing Myself That Arsenal SHOULD Sign Pedro Neto

  1. allezkev June 3, 2024 at 4:58 pm #

    I’d take a punt on him at £25m but to me he isn’t available enough to risk anymore than that.

    • Jonah Jones June 4, 2024 at 1:37 pm #

      I feel the price may drop, and I’m willing to bet all top clubs will have a number where they’d be willing to come in at. Let’s see!

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