Chelsea’s Pedro Neto played 45 minutes of international football last night during Portugal’s memorable win over Croatia.
Portugal beat Croatia 2-1 in the Nations League competition on Thursday evening, which turned out to be a historic fixture because superstar Cristiano Ronaldo scored a landmark 900th career goal.
From a Chelsea perspective, Pedro Neto started the contest and played the first-half before being taken off. The 24-year-old winger went so close to scoring for his country when his shot fired off the crossbar.
Portuguese boss Roberto Martinez explained in his post-match interview that Neto came off at half-time because of his lack of football in recent months, as quoted by A Bola.
Chelsea fans react to Pedro Neto display
A selection of Chelsea supporters on social media were all saying how good Neto was in midweek for Portugal.
Speaking recently via Sky Sports, Jamie Carragher hailed Neto as the best Premier League signing. There’s certainly no doubt that the left-footed attacker has a special ability, but he’s just getting himself up to full speed still.
Here are Blues fans on X praising Neto’s international display versus Croatia.
One fan said: “Pedro Neto is a baller man, he’s weirdly smooth.”
Another wrote: “Pedro Neto is at his best on the right wing.”
A third user posted: “Pedro Neto has been so impressive in the first half. That lightening speed was giving flash speed, so unlucky he didn’t score.”
One supporter claimed: “Who saw that long run and hit the wood work by Pedro Neto? Bro may be actually faster than Mudryk!”
Another shared: “Pedro Neto was unlucky, he nearly scored there. His strong acceleration along with sheer pace on the flank is quite difficult for any defender to cope with.”
Pedro Neto position
We’ve seen Neto operating on the left wing in the early weeks of his Chelsea career, something he can do extremely well. However, we love seeing him start from the right wing and cutting infield.
It’s going to be very interesting to see what Blues head coach Enzo Maresca does long-term with his team selection because he’s got plenty of options in forward areas.
When Neto is back to full fitness and match sharpness, we expect he’ll make a huge impact on this team wherever he’s playing.
It’s worth remembering that the last time he completed 90 minutes in a competitive match was back in February for Wolverhampton Wanderers. Therefore, Chelsea supporters may have to be a little patient with him as he works his way back to his best.
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox
