It was two years ago that Tottenham Hotspur were heavily linked with a move for Pedro Neto, with Ange Postecoglou believed to have been driving the move for the Portuguese.
The now-26-year-old ultimately left Molineux to join Chelsea, although reports have suggested he could well be on the move again this summer, amid interest from Manchester City.
A reunion with former Blues boss, Enzo Maresca, has been mooted at the Etihad, albeit with Spurs also seemingly in the mix again too, having been discussing a potential move of their own.
Evidently, Neto is attracting admiring glances from the Premier League’s elite – but should he be?
Pedro Neto’s Premier League record so far
Amid turbulent times under the Todd Boehly regime at Chelsea, Neto has proven a solid, if not unspectacular, addition for the west London side, having joined on a £51m deal back in 2024.
The winger’s debut campaign ended with a respectable haul of ten goals and assists in the league under Maresca, before he added a further 11 goal involvements last season.
Across those two campaigns combined, the former Wolverhampton Wanderers man has also created 23 ‘big chances’, operating either off the right, off the left or even as a makeshift centre-forward.
It’s been a creditable two years then at Stamford Bridge, but his overall record in English football isn’t mindblowing, scoring just 20 goals and registering only 31 assists in 180 Premier League games to date,
Set to turn 27 in March, this is no ‘prospect’ now either, with Neto’s injury record also of some concern, having only ever gone beyond 20 Premier League starts in three of his seven seasons in England.
|
Pedro Neto’s PL Record |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Season |
Starts |
Goals (Assists) |
|
25/26 |
30 |
5 (6) |
|
24/25 |
24 |
4 (6) |
|
23/24 |
18 |
2 (9) |
|
22/23 |
13 |
0 (0) |
|
21/22 |
5 |
1 (1) |
|
20/21 |
30 |
5 (6) |
|
19/20 |
9 |
3 (3) |
His overall record since moving to Wolves in 2019 doesn’t suggest that he’ll necessarily be a success at N17, registering just 14 goals and 27 assists in 135 games in all competitions for the Old Gold, alongside 19 goals and 19 assists in 103 games for his current side.
Moving from west London to north London is rarely a popular move either, although thankfully, Spurs do have other options to consider this summer.
How Spurs could sign a bigger talent than Pedro Neto
The attack is yet to be strengthened at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, albeit with the headline target at present said to be that of Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo.
Whether the Anfield side will actually sell is another matter, however, with it more likely that a deal is struck for Savinho, particularly if Man City can sign Neto as a replacement.
There may well be something of a merry-go-round on the cards, with journalist Ben Jacobs – speaking on talkSPORT’s YouTube channel – suggesting that Spurs are now “confident” of reaching an agreement with City regarding the Brazilian.
“Savinho talks ongoing. Spurs are confident that they can agree a fee, but then those numbers will be up to the Manchester City board.
“And key to all of this is going to be whether or not Ferran Soriano and the Man City board want to sell, because they didn’t 12 months ago. And in likelihood, City will have to find a replacement as well.”
Now, Savinho is fresh off the back of a difficult second season at City, having registered just one goal and one assist in the Premier League, after falling down the pecking order under Pep Guardiola.
It had been a fruitful 2024/25 campaign for the 22-year-old, however, the left-footer notably registered eight assists and created 11 ‘big chances, while averaging 1.6 key passes per game, ahead of Neto’s average of 1.3 that season.
What Spurs are really banking on, however, is what Savinho showcased at Girona in 2023/24, the then-youngster showcasing a level that Neto hasn’t hit as yet during his senior career.
In that season in LaLiga, Savinho scored nine and registered a further 13 assists, creating 14 ‘big chances’ and averaging 1.5 key passes per game.
Most notably, he averaged 2.8 successful dribbles per game for the Catalan side, actually leading the way in the division in terms of total successful dribbles completed, ahead of the likes of Vinicius Junior.
For comparison, Neto’s best league record across his time at Wolves and Chelsea, in terms of goal contributions, is the 11 he achieved in 2020/21, 2023/24 and 2025/26, never close to the 22 that Savinho achieved at Girona.
In terms of successful dribbles, Neto’s best average came in 2020/21 (2.1), still well below Savinho’s Girona record, with there a sense that the Chelsea man might have lost that real explosive edge to his game through injury.
Of course, Savinho needs to showcase he can deliver the goods on a consistent basis at Premier League level, but based on what he showcased in Spain, his ceiling does appear to be far higher.
While those at City may view signing Neto as an upgrade on the struggling Brazilian, it might well be Spurs who have the last laugh.