Journalist Luke Edwards has been speaking on the BBC’s Transfer Gossip Daily podcast about Newcastle United’s pursuit of Joao Pedro.
Newcastle have already seen two bids knocked back for Pedro this summer as Eddie Howe looks to bring in some fresh faces to his attacking lineup after a long slog in the transfer market.
Pedro was not to be seen during Watford’s game at the weekend with a supposed ankle injury, although that may seem rather interesting timing given the interest in the attacker and also that he reportedly is keen to play alongside fellow countrymen Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes.
However, Edwards currently believes that Newcastle’s hopes of landing Pedro this summer currently hang in the balance.
He said: “I think it still hangs in the balance a little bit at the moment.
“I’m going to do that thing, you know when people make quotation marks with their fingers? I’m not actually going to do that because it’s one of my pet hates, but he missed Watford’s game against Preston this weekend with a ‘calf injury’; a ‘slight’ calf injury.
Will Newcastle manage to sign Pedro?
Yes!
No!
“Now, that says to me a player very much keeping their options open when it comes to the possibility of leaving in this transfer window.”
TIF Thoughts on Newcastle’s interest in Pedro…
Pedro appears to fit the profile of attacker that Newcastle and Eddie Howe are looking for, which is someone who is young enough to potentially play as an understudy to Callum Wilson, but also ready to feature in the Premier League across the frontline.
The Brazilian certainly did that last season for Watford, featuring in 28 league games and playing in several different positions, and the Magpies may have been handed a transfer boost in terms of Watford’s potential willingness to sell.
This is because a deal which would have seen the Hornets lose Ismaila Sarr to Aston Villa is now off, meaning that the likelihood of them sanctioning a sale for Pedro while keeping Sarr could now be greater.