Wolverhampton Wanderers have joined the race to sign Watford striker Joao Pedro, according to reports.
The Lowdown: Watford standing firm
The Hornets aren’t currently under any pressure to sell the 20-year-old given his contract at Vicarage Road doesn’t expire until 2025, but they are open to any proposals that arrive over the summer.
Fellow Premier League outfit Newcastle United have already had two bids worth £17.5m followed by an increased £30m rejected, with Rob Edwards’ side believed to value their forward at £35m.
Despite the Magpies remaining in talks for the Brazilian, that hasn’t stopped them from facing competition, and several clubs now seem to have put their name forward, one of those being the Wanderers.
The Latest: Wolves monitoring Pedro
According to 90min, Wolves are ‘keeping tabs’ on Pedro’s situation, alongside Nottingham Forest, Leicester and Leeds.
Sources close to Watford have ‘confirmed’ that Everton have also ‘made contact’ regarding the availability of the attacker, while Bruno Lage’s team’s interest hasn’t developed to the stage of a formal enquiry just yet.
It’s stated that the player is still ‘keen’ on making the switch to Newcastle and has ‘made his feelings known’.
The Verdict: Not enough experience
Wolves will be desperate to add another centre-forward to their ranks before the end of the window as a result of Raul Jimenez only just returning from injury and Fabio Silva having left to join Anderlecht on loan, but Pedro isn’t the answer.
The 5 foot 9 starlet, dubbed ‘sublime’ by sports journalist Josh Bunting, is certainly talented, but has only made 33 appearances in the top-flight, netting just three goals since arriving in England two years ago, as per Transfermarkt.
Lage needs a proven goalscorer who can slot into his starting XI immediately, but it feels like Pedro is still in his development stage, so therefore the boss should focus his efforts on signing either Sasa Kalajdzic or Goncalo Ramos, both of whom have been heavily linked with a move to Molineux.