West Bromwich Albion journalist Steve Madeley has shared an update on the future of Matheus Pereira.
This comes after Madeley recently made an appearance on The Athletic’s EFL-based podcast, Going Up, Going Down to preview the imminent return of the current Championship season.
On the topic of the Baggies’ on-loan Brazilian and whether or not this break away from football will have been used as an opportunity for the club to tie up a permanent deal for Pereira, Madeley shared his views.
He said: “In a strange way, it’s probably worked the other way. When football was halted, Pereira looked to all intents and purposes like a permanent West Brom player. I think that will almost certainly still be the case. The deal is done, the personal terms are agreed.
“West Brom have asked Sporting Lisbon to delay the activation of that permanent deal and the initial payment, which obviously just creates a slight element of doubt there about Pereira’s future. But I still think that Pereira is as good as a permanent West Brom player, which will obviously be music to everyone’s ears.”
Pereira signed to the Midlands club back in August 2019 on a loan deal from Sporting Lisbon (per Transfermarkt).
This season, Pereira has made 33 Championship appearances for the Baggies, in which he has managed to score six goals and provide 12 assists along the way.
The Brazilian’s performances in these appearances have earned him a season rating of 7.34/10, making him West Brom’s highest-rated player in this campaign (per WhoScored).
Has Matheus Pereira been West Brom's best player this season?
Yes
No
TIF Thoughts…
Despite the “slight element of doubt” that Madeley mentioned surrounding Pereira’s permanent deal at the club, he still sounds fairly confident that it will be worked out in due course.
Given how impressive Pereira has been for the Baggies this season, getting him on a permanent basis would surely be a big boost for the club.