According to The Athletic, Arsenal want to sign Wolves’ winger Pedro Neto and have been talking to his representative Jorge Mendes for more than a month.
The 22-year-old Portugal international is viewed as a replacement for Nicolas Pepe who could move to Nice on loan.
David Ornstein caveats his report by pointing out that Arsenal, having spent big against the backdrop of a financially difficult couple of years, need to be mindful of adhering to Premier League and UEFA FFP rules; a topic @SwissRamble talks in depth about this morning.
Neto joined Wolves from Lazio three years ago and has been a mainstay in the first team under Nuno Espirito Santo and Bruno Lage.
To date, he’s made 95 appearances at Molineux, making 12 assists and scoring 11 goals. Prior to his move to England, he came through the ranks at Braga and spent a season on loan at Lazio.
Last season, he played the majority of his football as a left winger but also featured off the right, as an attacking midfielder and as a striker. Basically, he’s versatile which seems to be the hallmark of many of Arteta’s recent transfer targets.
Earlier in the summer, Arsenal were willing to spend around £45 million for Raphinha before Barcelona came in with silly money.
While Arsenal’s attitude towards ‘super agent’ Mendes has softened in the post-Arsene Wenger years – he recently played a role in getting Fabio Vieira to Arsenal – we still think this could be a very difficult deal to get over the line. Time is of the essence and Wolves are in a strong position to play hardball.
With that in mind, and Arteta speaking openly about his desire to “add more firepower” to the squad, we wouldn’t be surprised if other names are also linked in the last 10 days of the window.
Great player. Expensive as well
I think Saint-Maximin is also worth to consider. A very explosive attacking MF
No chance, Newcastle are ballin nowadays.
I agree. Newcastle are beginning to flex their new financial muscle and they aren’t going to sell unless they really want to.
Although it will take time, as it did at other clubs taken over by rich owners, Newcastle will become a force in the PL. Unfortunately, that’s the last thing we want or need but there it is.
Well Man Utd are currently vacating a spot in the Top 6 and Leicester are showing that sides on the ascendancy don’t always have staying power. Time will tell if Newcastle prove a major force in the league.
Not really comparing like with like here. Leicester certainly don’t have the financial clout available to either Utd or (now) Newcastle and that’s bound to tell over time. Yes, Utd are in a poor state at present (ho, ho) but one way or another I doubt that will last too much longer. I wouldn’t be surprised if they weren’t sold. I can easily see a situation where City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Sp*rs, Arsenal, Utd and Newcastle are all fighting for the magic four CL places. Exciting yes, but it will be challenging.
The difference between Leicester and Newcastle is billions of dollars in dirty oil money. Chel$ki and Man £ity proved that model works. I think you better get used to another big team in the EPL. Maybe at the expense of a Rubleless Chel$ki, who might go back to what they were pre-Rubles…Top-half, Europa-less team (let’s hope…).
Atleast Newcastle are a club with history and a real fanbase, I’ve got respect for the Geordies.
I remember my old dad talking about going to the FA Cup final in 1952 against Newcastle when, unfortunately, they beat us 1:0. They’ve been around a long time and have great supporters.
Yeah, just a shame all that history and fanbase are now part of a full-time sportswashing affair!
Well, things change I guess and you never know who may take over club.
He has the ‘chaos’ factor…like St Maximin…if he adds goals he could be even better than saka or martinelli on both wings…with tielemans and marginal improvements for the next 2seasons I can picture the squad in the final stages of the champions League.
That’s a big if and based on nothing. Saka and Martinelli are younger with more end product.
Based on his stats, does he put it enough in the Neto not?
get out!
Not a better player than Pepe. Overconfidence bias from Arteta and Edu.
I would get depression if we signed saint-maxim. The guy is walking accessories shop. Can dribble sometimes.
Yes please to more Portuguese
Would be good. Versatile and premier league ready. We would have a fearsome frontline if this gets done. It would be such an exciting and interchangeable frontline it would provide so many options to Arteta. I would prioritize this type of signing over a CM signing. I have a feeling we are just going to let Tielamans run his contract down and pick him up later on for free. Would be very very smart business and squad building if we did and would be in keeping with recent trends.
Adding on, not that we don’t already have a fearsome frontline, but this type of signing would just add so much of depth and flexibility.
We could never have too much fearsomeness.
I have a feeling we were interested in Tielemans but he was always a back up. I think we’d have gone for him already if we were serious. I’ve always liked him as a player, even before he went to Leicester, but his attitude concerns me. He’s been pretty bad this year and I’m not sure I want a player who downs tools after a bit of speculation. We’re moving away from that kind of personality.
I think you could be right concerning his attitude. Hard to think of any “negative” characters in this current Arsenal squad so it would make sense not to disrupt that. Which reinforces why I believe we won’t make a CM signing this window. We will try and get another attacker done and that would be it I reckon. Zinchenko is quality backup for Xhaka, and if Sambi really takes a step further in his development then we are well equipped in midfield for a top four challenge. Mo and Fabio are further options in midfield as well. Next summer is… Read more »
No need to wait another year. The way results are going with other teams a push for the title might just be on this season. Early days of course.
One year is a long time in football and considering how Arsenal is evolving, Tielemans might not be relevant to Arsenal next season when we might be looking at an even better player.
Cheeky 15m on deadline day could get it done
Wow. Definitely going all in this summer. You love to see it!
I’m not convinced.
While he is fast and with great ball control he doesn’t strike me as a particular hard worker and the end product isn’t really that impressive.
Obviously Arteta and Edu knows quite a lot more about football than me, and if we sign him I’ll trust their decision (I think they have earned that), but in my opinion there are better target out there in that price range.
You would say that, wouldn’t you, Yeremy!
Whoa. Now that’s a player. Premier league ready too.
He could end up being our Jota, a very exciting young player that’s ready to step up to the next level. Would give us great options going forward, would love for us to get this deal done.
Kid is an Arsenal fan. Seems like we are collecting them these days
Neto looks a very different style of player to Jota though. Jota was dynamite for Wolves (and still is for Liverpool) – insanely high-energy, a battler, and very well-rounded, and he was already a very obviously good player by the time Liverpool bought him (he was 25 whereas Neto is 22). For me Neto looks like a clever player, but he doesn’t have that dynamism Jota has, and if we do buy him I would hope he has a higher ceiling than I’ve seen from watching him play and his highlights. He’s clearly got talent, but he only seems to… Read more »
Wolves don’t play attacking football, so it’s unclear just how Neto might do in Arteta’s front line
Another Portuguese speaker, fits the bill. 1 morning no.2 from me.
Would love this, but another year of failing to improve the midfield is worrying.
Rome wasn’t built in a day. Slow and steady.
It’s been 5 years though 😀
We haven’t had Partey for 5 years mate.
Nah. I’d much rather build a good defence (ticked off last year) and then add exciting attack.
We cant get ahead of ourselves. This is a project where we will watch the team mature in front of our eyes.
I’m excited for it
I think the midfield directly affects the attack, strangely more so than adding another attacker (naturally, I want both). Better press resistance, kickstarting attacks in transitions, mobility and faster distribution so our attackers receive the ball with more space and not static against a well-organised defence.
I think Xhaka has been helping with that.
I think there’s a huge opportunity cost there, personally.
Could be. Not denying. But I do feel we are in a much better position than to rush into transfers. I would personally wait till January and see how things are if nothing special comes up between now and the end of the transfer window.
Yeah January could be very atypical. I think a lot of money will be spent. Waiting to see what shakes out then isn’t the worst strategy. I suspect that will form part of the hardball negotiations for Neto too. Depends how much Wolves need the cash. Fosun share price not looking too clever.
Exactly this and we need to be extremely careful in bringing in the right kind of players and avoid a Pepe kind of a deal at all costs. Another mistake like that I think is not going to be sustainable for us as a club. Zinny can play as a midfielder if required be and we always have Tierney to play left back. I for one think we are healthier than ever.
We got viera and zinchenko already…
Vieira
Phew! That cleared it up. Cheers!
We bought Vieira. The forgotten star.
This and Zinchenko 100% strengthens our midfield, even when playing LB.
I think the profile we need is more of a carrier from deep. Lack of dribblers in the team in general.
Saka, Jesus and Martinelli all dribblers. White and Saliba both carry well out of the back. Zingy also dribbles. There is a lack of dribblers in the midfield but our greatest need is more goal threat. Not comfortable w Marquinhos as Saka replacement, the drop in level is likely too much. RW is the weak spot and Arteta knows it.
I’m surprised we haven’t tried to get Partey cover. Would midfield be Xhaka and Elneny if he’s out?
Yikes.
I think we have to acknowledge Partey is a bit of a unicorn player and we’re unlikely to have similar quality waiting in reserve. With the way we’ve bolstered our technical quality in the middle with Zinchenko and White tucking in, I don’t think Partey’s verticality of passing is quite as critical to us as it was last season, because of that I’d be less worried about Elneny or Sambi filling in for him if needed.
Exactly. A technically secure but conservative Elneny would limit our attacking ability much less now.
Xhaka, Zinny
Xhaka, Sambi
Xhaka, Vieira
Xhaka, Elneny
Xhaka, White
we have options.
Agreed on a TP backup – the stats with him in the side are great, very poor without.
Called it first, Neto is the final piece that enables Saka Left 8. 🙃
Interesting if true
Good call. I have always thought that would be his position long term.
Well, if you ignore position labels, I think Zinchenko makes a huge difference in the midfield. Much more fluid team (not just because of Zinchenko, of course) and much less dependent on Partey as our only way through a press. That Mexican guy, Tequila, helps too.
I like this approach of ours, going for young high ceiling players whilst also weakening our rivals in the process.
Wolves were rivals 2 years ago.
They have made some good signings as well and were clearly the better team than Spuds. Not taking them as rivals but Wolves are definitely a good team.
A fantastic talent but given his recent injury it seems like a gamble.
Finally .. someone to kick saka’s ass ahah. I’m guessing this news alone will get me 2 goals from saka this weekend. Isn’t it amazing how ødegaard produced a man of the match performance once vierra was back?
Neto is a top talent. I remember him driving at rudigar and scoring a winner at the 90+minute. We need that kind of mentality. Top top.
I hope we can get it done.
I’m slightly more concerned about our “firepower” up front. Jesus is magic, but not long ago, we weren’t really that excited about Eddie. He can still impress this season, especially since he’d be surrounded by so much pace and talent, but am I the only one thinking we’re a bit light upfront. I’m not hearing anything about a potential new striker at all…
A new winger is more fire power up front.
Not with the few goals and assists that Neto provides. I just wish Arteta would give Pepe more game time as he’s far more dangerous than Neto.
To me Pepe’s liability to the team is the east giveaways, how easily he can be dispossessed when we are building an attack or when he receives a ball to relieve pressure. And is lack of ability to win it back. Opposite of Martinelli
Martinelli can play through the middle, name a player we could buy who is as close in style to jesus. Eddie will be fine playing there as well against most teams as he proved at the end of last season.
Disagree on Eddie. He’s not at the level we need if Jesus gets injured.
I think Martinelli can do it. Does seem pretty fucking crucial Jesus stays fit tho
Saka at L8?
Just 11 goals in 4 years at Wolves and we have the exciting Marquinhos and Vieira to give minutes to.
he’s young and also has had a major injury lay off. furthermore, he’s played in a Wolves team that doesn’t score very many goals, But if i’m being honest I’d still prefer CHO from chelsea.
Hudson Odoi could be a fallible mistake. Me thinks. 👀
The man is a wizard playing down the flanks. Could be a good deal.
Vieira I feel would be better suited down the middle and Marquinhos needs time if we are to compete.
Put with a better team and he’ll think fly I think
There must be more reliable punts with that sort of money, Gakpo is probably cheaper.
All depends what kind of money I suppose
Did he score against us a couple of seasons ago?
They’d never sell to us but I’d honestly prefer CHO from Chelsea. Adds an element of creativity as well as dribbling and directness on our wings
And zero end product. On a similar level to Reiss Nelson- his career just hasn’t gone the way many hoped.
I think there’s big potential there CHO just needs the right team. Neto has 12G and 11A in 4 years at wolves so I don’t think the end product argument is as valid as some might think
Are you CHO’s mum?
He’s different gravy to Nelson. Watch him against liverpool last season, and listen to what Thierry henry said about him after the game. He could be a superstar player in the making.
Unbelievable signing if we could get it done
Why is he unbelievable?. Stats are worse than Pepe who I still believe could play a big part if given a proper chance. Minority view perhaps.
Pepe has had his fair bit of chances tbh. Could be a decent player on his day but way too one dimensional, a tad bit lazy and just hasn’t been able to fit into Arteta’s set up.
Yes, in football terms he is completely out of the frame now and it’s all about when and how he leaves, isn’t it. Arteta/Edu want him off the books asap but very likely it will only be on loan (with Arsenal probably having to subsidise his reported £7.2m a season wages at his new club). Not ideal, but I can’t see anyone buying him – certainly not in this window anyway.
A reason why I definitely feel we should be targeting tried and tested Premier League players more often than not. Clubs from other leagues hardball you when you are trying to buy a player off them and act shoe strung while trying to buy a player off you. Perks of being a club in the cash rich Premier League I suppose. And no club in the PL would want Pepe as things stand I guess.
To call him lazy is wrong. It’s the Ozil syndrome. Laid back but covers as much ground as any other player. I love what Arteta but still feel he hasn’t persisted with Pepe enough and has sapped his confidence. To me Pepe is vastly more talented than Neto.
I love what Arteta is doing.
Ozil syndrome was what got Ozil out of the team. Just saying. And he just hasn’t settled down has he? A bit of a Torreira syndrome too I guess.
You obviously have misconstrued what I meant. I was meaning that so many people called him lazy when stats showed clearly the opposite was true.
He doesn’t press well or stop crosses. Every time he is on the field our right side gets targeted for a reason. His defense is well below average.
You’re misguided if you think Pepe is going to come good at this stage, it’s been apparent for a long time that he isn’t suited to us or the premier league.
I disagree. Certainly better than Neto or other overrated wingers such as Zaha. Still maintain he’s shown enough to be an important part of the team.
Have you seen Zaha this season? Zaha is magnitudes better than Pepe or Neto. The only reason he’s not consistently scoring 15+ goals a season is because he plays for CP. If we’d have signed Zaha instead of Pepe, zero chance we’re having a similar conversation about him.
Zaha is overrated, inconsistent and a moaning diving cheat. No thank you. He failed at Man Utd and would have been a poor signing. I still maintain Pepe was a better signing.
Better than Zaha??? Wow I don’t think so.
Really? He’s a class above Zaha and isn’t a diving cheat either.
Stop with the stats and watch him play.
It’s because I’ve seen enough of Pepe to show what a great player he is. Even great managers make mistakes with players such as Mourinho did with De Bruyne.
I think Pepe is talented, but more of an individual than a system player. He can create chances out of very little, but is loose with possession to do it. I think he was badly underutilised in the previous 2 seasons when often our attacking system was predictable and lacked urgency and we needed more risk taking Now we seem to have clicked going forward, I don’t think he’s as useful as he perhaps could have been when we were struggling. Still there’ll be times this season when the system falls flat and we aren’t creating – in theory his… Read more »
Unfortunately that the Pepe story. I recall a time when his set piece delivery was something to behold. But at this stage both the club and the player would be better served by a parting of ways. If he goes to Nice on loan I hope he can rediscover his mojo this making it easier to sell him
He doesn’t suit arsenal or the premier league. He’s a counter attacking player on a team who wants to play from the back and control possession. When we lose the ball we try to press the opposition high up the pitch that doesn’t suit pepe either.
Willock has become a serious player though. Would not have needed any midfield signing had he still been with us. Not blaming anyone for selling him though. Was the right move at that time.
Really
Smokescreen.
Like Tielemans.
In discussions for the last month, yet nothing has happened.
The fact the info is being leaked now is the more interesting tidbit…
Well i like him but he need to improve on finishing just like martinelli. 45m is okay but i know wolves wont sanction that ..if not we go for mudryk ..as a cheaper alternative
I like a player of his quality coming to Arsenal and strengthening us, and weakening one of our competitors.
Lots of speculation about lots of players. The focus seems to have shifted to Neto although several other names are in the ring according to reports. One point though. We’ve already spent out £120m, with nothing substantial coming in from sales so far. Bringing in another player without anyone leaving could raise FFP issues according to one report I saw. If so, we really do need to shift the likes of AMN (for a fee) and Pepe (on loan to get his salary, or part of it, off the books). It’s beginning to get a little tight now with the… Read more »
Swap + cash with Pepe, come on Edu you can do it.
So, as it stands, in the event of fatigue and/or injury, Elneny for Partey and Lokonga for Xhaka. Now, in the event of multiple injuries, the four can be interchangeable, but in every case it changes the team noticeably. I am not ok with this. I see a considerable drop in quality and effectiveness in this case and personally think it is here we need to improve.
Didnt see him play much, but his stats are not looking very great tbh…
This can’t be true. Edu got on an aeroplane to Valencia, last week
So how is Neto better than Pepe ? Wouldn’t make sense to give Pepe more playing and agree on an expected output
Watch him play, he’s completely different to pepe. He can run with the ball, link up play, can go outside fullbacks and cross with his right foot, can cut inside and finish with his left. He’s always playing on the front foot looking to take players on. There’s no comparison between the two. He could explode in our team with the space he will get, compared to at wolves where he’s their only attacking outlet and gets doubled up on all the time.
Finish? Pepe is a far better finisher. You’re right there is no comparison with two and Neto is nowhere near the class of Neto.
If pepe’s such a good player why can’t we give him away? You obviously see something in him every scout and manager in Europe can’t. We won’t be able to even loan him out unless we pay most of his wages.
You obviously have inside information about the interest shown in Pepe. I agree we will make a loss if he’s sadly sold, but please tell me how you know there is no interest from other clubs.
If there were any interest in him he would be gone. It’s been obvious for over a year the manager doesn’t fancy him. No need to have inside information, Arteta said in a press conference a year or more ago I’ve done all I can with him. I can’t see him changing his tactics and style of play to suit a player he doesn’t rate. It’s been obvious for a long time that they will be willing to take a big loss on him.
I think we need a big tall experienced striker who does not need to play all the time but can contribute when we are in jam
Jesus is not tall and is out competing centrebacks every week
A winger who could also play up front would be just what the doctor ordered.
With Pepe leaving we basically don’t have any real options to replace Saka…Vieira might play there and Marquinhos might be an exciting talent, Martinelli could also be switched over. Our bench might look formidable right now but for a long season we absolutely need another body up front. And no, Reiss Nelson isn’t an answer to any question worth asking.
Is Neto the target or a decoy while we chase Pino or somebody else?
Difficult to tell the decoys from the real target. If reports are true, we’ve offered quite a lot less for Neto than is likely to be considered and I’m not sure Wolves will agree anyway as the article suggests. Edu’s gaze may be focused elsewhere – either to another PL club (Leicester?) or a Spanish club (Villarreal?). I think he may be looking towards Spain, but it will be costly option and I think we’ll need to offload a couple of players.
Don’t see it happening. Wolves will be wanting an arm and a leg.
We just don’t need another winger in the squad right now. It’s unlikely either Neto or Pino would make our strongest XI, but would divide ESR’s and/or Vieira’s game time further, without adding much players we have can’t already do. Ok make an exception if a world class talent becomes available, but they’re not that
If we’re to spend any more it should be on a centre mid to take/challenge Xhaka’s spot, and that’s it
I felt like Ramsdale was an average Keeper and that Ben White was not good enough to justify the price tag. So I won’t judge anything this front office does, because they clearly have a plan and they know better than me. Another thing I wish to be dead wrong about : I feel like Nketiah is not good enough. We judge him too kindly because he’s a “youngster” but he’s only 2 years younger than Jesus. I feel like if Jesus gets hurt, we’re in big trouble… But i’m sure he’s gonna prove me wrong and I’m gonna love… Read more »
just watched his highlight reel on youtube. looks legit! skilled, fast, and bold about taking on fullbacks. would be delighted to have him in our team.
I agree he’s probably a good fit but for context watch Pepe’s highlight reel and be amazed.
Just think he might be one of three depending on price and whether it goes with Arsenal valuation
Neto
Pino
or the Ukranian Messi
Before we get too carried away with who we may sign in the remaining days of this window, there are reports this morning that UEFA have Arsenal on a watchlist of 20 European clubs that could be in danger of breaching Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules. Hardly surprising given our transfer activity in the last couple of seasons. If the reports are true, we’re probably going to have to offload players – the likes of AMN and Pepe, for a fee and on loan respectively, to free up financial “space” for a further signing.