Second Premier League club had offer rejected for Pedro Neto before Chelsea agreed deal

A second club had an offer rejected for Pedro Neto by Wolverhampton Wanderers before Chelsea eventually agreed a deal.

After impressing for Wolves over the last few seasons, Neto had been linked with the likes of Liverpool, Manchester City and Arsenal.

It was reported that City could target the Portuguese international as a potential replacement for Julian Alvarez, who is set to join Spanish La Liga side Atletico Madrid.

However, on Friday afternoon, it was claimed that Chelsea were in advanced talks with Wolves to sign Neto.

Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano wrote on social media: “Pedro Neto to Chelsea, here we go! Wolves accept bid worth €60m fixed fee plus €3m add-ons as almost matches initial price tag.

“Neto’s agent Mendes has agreed on personal terms with Chelsea. Medical tests booked for Pedro at #CFC with Wolves keen on Ajax’s Carlos Forbes.”

Prior to Chelsea agreeing a deal with Wolves, it was reported that fellow Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur had a player plus cash offer rebuffed.

Express&Star’s Wolves correspondent Liam Keen wrote: “Spurs & Chelsea both had player+cash offers for Neto rejected by Wolves, with Spurs' offer including midfielder Oliver Skipp.

“Wolves rejected another cash offer from Chelsea before agreeing to this fee. Ajax's Carlos Forbs is of interest but nothing advanced.”

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Chelsea have had a mixed bag of results during their first pre-season under new boss Enzo Maresca.

Speaking about the new season, winger Raheem Sterling said: “He(Maresca)’s come in and stamped his authority with the way he wants to play.

“Yes, some of the results haven’t been pleasing to the eye, but with the ball the right information is getting passed on. You can see the patterns that are coming through. It’s early days but you can definitely see where we are looking to go and the way we are trying to play.”

He added: “With this way in the early stages, mistakes are made. Some games it cost us, but the manager is highlighting what we can do better. It’s a learning process for the whole group and it’s one we are grasping really quickly.

“The Premier League is coming real soon and I do think it’s good times ahead.”