"Fantastic Work Rate" - Xabi Alonso May Have Explained Why Chelsea Have Rewarded Attacker With New Deal | OneFootball

A new contract for Pedro Neto at Chelsea.

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Chelsea have rewarded versatile winger Pedro Neto with a new contract after his strong start to the season.

Just a couple of weeks ago, Neto’s future at Chelsea looked uncertain.

Chelsea were understood to be open to selling the 26-year-old, who attracted interest from several clubs, including Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur, if a suitable offer arrived. That said, Chelsea demanded a steep asking price of close to £100 million for Neto, influenced by the market rate of other wingers during the summer window.

Despite the high interest, Neto ended up staying at Chelsea and has proved important to Xabi Alonso’s plans so far.

Amid Marco Palestra’s injury absence, Neto is one of the manager’s primary options at right wing-back in his 3-4-2-1 system, alongside Malo Gusto. Alonso usually deploys Neto as an attacking wing-back, which has proved quite effective given the player’s two goals in five appearances.

On Friday, Chelsea announced that Neto, who joined from Wolves on a deal worth up to £54m two years ago, has signed a new contract at Stamford Bridge.

The new contract adds another year to his previous deal, tying him to the club until the summer of 2032.

Interestingly, a report from The Athletic claims that Neto's new deal actually runs until 2033.

Reports suggest the new contract mainly rewards his strong start to the season and his commitment to the club with a pay rise.

It is not exactly a new policy at Chelsea. While the club owners continue to raise eyebrows by offering lengthy performance-driven contracts to players, they have also shown that outstanding performers still get rewarded with improved terms mid-contract. This policy can also help Chelsea fend off interest in their stars.

Aside from Neto, the club have also rewarded three other players with improved contracts in 2026: Joao Pedro, Reece James, and Moises Caicedo. Cole Palmer signed his improved deal earlier in 2024.

“It’s an unbelievable moment,” Neto told Chelsea's in-house media about committing to a new deal.

“From when I arrived, I have always felt like the people here helped me a lot. I feel like home here, I feel like I want to achieve more things here.

“I have had some good moments here as a group and as an individual, and now I want to have more of those moments. I’m really excited because I think we can achieve a lot of things together.”

Not your typical wing-back

Neto’s versatility makes him such an asset to the team. Since his arrival, he has already played as a winger, both on the left and on the right, as a centre-forward, and now as a wing-back.

Alonso still insists that he sees Neto as a winger, though.

“For me, he's a winger,” the Chelsea boss said about Neto in Friday’s press conference.

“You can call him a winger or a wing-back. He can play on the last line and defend on the first line. He can do many things. He is good one-v-one, scoring goals, and has a fantastic work rate.

“I knew him well from watching many games of Chelsea. With him, you know he's going to compete, and we want those types of players in our team.”

Neto isn't a typical wing-back, since he has much more freedom to stay higher up the pitch than expected of a player in this position. This isn't necessarily a weakness, either, because his attacking threat can pin the opposition full-back in their defensive third.