Neto Embraces Wing-Back Role as Alonso Reshapes Chelsea
Pedro Neto has flourished at right wing-back under Xabi Alonso, scoring twice in Chelsea's win at Everton after a summer of uncertainty over his future.
Pedro Neto scored twice from right wing-back as Chelsea beat Everton 2-0 at Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday, the clearest sign yet of how Xabi Alonso has reshaped the Portuguese attacker's role. The switch echoes Chelsea's past, when Victor Moses moved from winger to wing-back under Antonio Conte a decade ago and helped drive a 13-match winning run toward the 2017 Premier League title.
Neto's path to this point was far from straightforward. Chelsea set an asking price of about £100m for him in the summer and did not treat him as untouchable, with the player known to be frustrated after Enzo Maresca's departure on New Year's Day and Liam Rosenior's brief spell in charge ending with a 10th-place finish. Questions lingered over whether he wanted to play wing-back, and uncertainty over his future persisted until the transfer window closed.
He then signed a new contract until 2032 last month and has publicly backed the project under Alonso, joining team-mates such as Cole Palmer, Joao Pedro, Reece James and Moises Caicedo in committing to a revised vision built on adding experience to existing talent. Alonso's asymmetric setup, which asks less attacking output from the left wing-back, gives Neto licence to push forward on the opposite flank.
The numbers show the effect. Neto has four goals and one assist in nine appearances this season, three of them as a substitute, more than double his previous strike-rate. He averages 5.3 touches in the opposition box per 90 minutes, up from 3.6, with successful dribbles rising from 1.6 to 1.8 and dribble success from 43.5% to 52.6%. Chances created have climbed from 1.8 to 2.0 per 90, while tackles have jumped from 0.7 to 2.0 and possessions won from 2.9 to 3.9.
Alonso downplayed labels after the Everton win, saying Neto can be called a winger, wing-back, attacking player or defensive player because he can do many things, adding that he is very competitive and a threat against any full-back when close to the action. Supporters who followed Chelsea closely may see parallels with Moses, though Neto has needed less reinvention: his move has amplified qualities already present rather than requiring a wholesale transformation.
Image: Getty Images / BBC Sport
