Arsenal Miss Out As Chelsea Expect To Wrap-Up £22m Attacker Deal Next Week

With the summer transfer window finally open for business, managers are working hard trying to strengthen their squads ahead of next season so we’ll bring you all the news and gossip. Today, Chelsea are linked with Pedro….

Chelsea expect to beat Arsenal to the signing of Pedro Rodriguez and seal a £22m deal for the Spanish attacker after this weekend’s Barcelona presidential elections, according to the Express.

Pedro has been with Barca his entire professional career having moved to the Nou Camp as a teenager and he appeared to commit his future to the club after signing a new long-term contract extension last month.

But the Guardian reported earlier this week that the new deal saw his buy-out clause reduce from £106m to a £22m making him far more affordable for potential suitors and this had led to intense speculation over a potential move to the Premier League.

The Mirror claim that the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea have been showing a keen interest in signing the 27-year-old attacker this summer and Pedro himself admitted that he’s received offers from other clubs and that his situation at Barca is ‘difficult’ due to a lack of regular football.

“It’s true I have received important offers but don’t want to say more out of respect for my club.

“My situation is complicated because I want to play a lot of minutes but that is becoming very difficult at Barcelona.” Pedro is quoted as saying by the Mirror.

This led to boss Luis Enrique telling reporters earlier this week that while he would prefer him to stay at the club, he won’t stand in his way if the attacker wants to leave this summer.

“My wish is that Pedro stays, but there are circumstances in his contract and I will respect his opinion if he wants to leave.” Enrique is quoted as saying by the Express

Pedro has struggled to secure a regular spot in Enrique’s starting eleven with the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez all well ahead of him in the pecking order and it appears Arsenal and Chelsea are ready to offer him a new challenge in England.

However, it looks as though the Blues are now in pole position as the Express claim that the Premier League champions expect to wrap-up a £22m deal for Pedro after the Barcelona presidential elections take place this weekend.

The newspaper suggests that Chelsea have offered Pedro a four-year deal and despite the interest from Arsenal, the player supposedly wants to link-up with former team mate Cesc Fabregas at Stamford Bridge with a deal set to be concluded next week.

Jose Mourinho has been pretty quiet in the transfer market so far with just Asmir Begovic coming in to replace Petr Cech while Radamel Falcao has arrived on loan, so I’d expect the Portuguese coach to bring in a few more players and it appears Pedro could be next through the door.

The Spanish international would be an excellent signing for the Blues as despite not always being a regular at Barca, he’s still managed to chip in with 98 goals in 318 appearances since breaking into the squad in 2008.

Pedro is predominantly played as a right-winger but is also capable of playing anywhere across the attacking positions, including as a central striker, so he’d give Mourinho plenty of options in the final third.

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He’s now coming to his peak years and with the European Championships coming up next summer, he needs regular game-time so I wouldn’t be surprised if he does leave Barcelona this summer and a move to West London could be on the cards.

We’ll have to wait and see how things develop next week and although there’s still time for Arsenal to try and hijack Chelsea’s proposed deal, as it stands it looks as though the Blues are in pole position to secure a deal.