Story by
Xabi Alonso Turned Pedro Neto Into Chelsea's Wing-Back After £100m Price Tag
- Story by
- Xabi Alonso Turned Pedro Neto Into Chelsea's Wing-Back After £100m Price Tag
-
Pedro Neto has scored four goals in nine Chelsea appearances this season after Xabi Alonso moved him to right wing-back, more than double his previous strike rate.
-
Chelsea put a price of about £100m on Neto in the summer, then gave him a new contract until 2032 last month.
-
Alonso says Neto can be called "whatever you want" and that "He can do many things."
The Winger Chelsea Priced at £100m Now Runs Their Right Flank
Ten years ago Chelsea won a Premier League title after turning a winger into a wing-back. Victor Moses made the switch under Antonio Conte, the system was new, and Chelsea went on a 13-match winning run on the way to the 2017 championship. Now Pedro Neto is doing the same job for Xabi Alonso, and the numbers say it suits him.
Advertisement
Neto scored twice from wing-back in Chelsea's 2-0 win at Everton's Hill Dickinson Stadium last Saturday. His season reads four goals and one assist in nine appearances, with three of those coming off the bench. That is more than double the strike rate he managed before Alonso arrived.
A summer when his future was open
Chelsea did not treat Neto as untouchable in the summer, though they set a lofty asking price of about £100m. He was among the players frustrated at the end of last season after Enzo Maresca, a manager he had a close relationship with, left the club on New Year's Day. Maresca's successor, Liam Rosenior, lasted less than four months and Chelsea finished 10th.
Cole Palmer, Joao Pedro, Reece James and Moises Caicedo all signed new contracts as the club bought into a revised plan of adding experience to the talent already in the squad. Alonso's appointment also appeared to win players over. Questions remained about whether Neto would relish a wing-back role, and his future stayed uncertain until the transfer window closed.
Advertisement
Last month he signed a new contract until 2032 after emerging as a key player under Alonso. Like several teammates, he has publicly backed Chelsea's project under Alonso.
What the numbers show
Neto joined Chelsea from Wolves for £54m in 2024. At Wolves he scored 14 goals and provided 27 assists in 135 appearances. His output at Stamford Bridge rose only a little before Alonso's arrival, with 19 goals and 19 assists in 103 appearances.
This season's Premier League figures, per 90 minutes, show a player doing more at both ends of the pitch:
-
Touches in the opposition box: 5.3, up from 3.6 last season
-
Successful dribbles: 1.8, up from 1.6, with his success rate climbing from 43.5% to 52.6%
-
Chances created: 2.0, up from 1.8, and open-play chances created: 1.8, up from 1.5
-
Tackles: 2.0, up from 0.7
-
Possessions won: 3.9, up from 2.9
He is attacking more and defending more in the same role. Neto has previously put his athleticism down in part to growing up in a family of roller-hockey players. In Chelsea's finest hour under the current American ownership, he effectively man-marked Achraf Hakimi as Chelsea beat Paris St-Germain 3-0 in the 2025 Club World Cup final.
Advertisement
An asymmetric plan and a dressing room joker
Alonso uses Neto differently from the man on the other side. The left-sided wing-back, usually Jorrel Hato or Pep Chavarria, is not asked for the same attacking output, which gives Neto more licence to drive forward on the right.
Asked about Neto's position last Saturday, Alonso kept it open. "You can call him whatever you want. Winger, wing-back, attacking player, defensive player. He can do many things," Alonso said. "Today he did well. He is very competitive and whenever he is close to the action he is a threat against any full-back."
Neto also brings humour to the squad, which Alonso will appreciate. After Chelsea's 6-3 Carabao Cup win over Leeds, in which Neto scored, his former Wolves teammate Conor Coady was working as a pundit for Sky Sports and asked him: "When have you ever been worried about conceding goals?" Neto replied: "Now I am a wing-back, lad." Both men laughed, and Neto added: "In my head, I always have to run back and help my defenders as well."
Advertisement
Moses 2.0, with fewer changes
Moses had to reinvent himself under Conte to great effect. Neto has not had to change quite as much. The move from winger to right wing-back has sharpened qualities he already had, and Chelsea are getting the best of both worlds: a player who still threatens in the final third and now wins the ball back more often.
