Chelsea negotiated £50m+ deal without formal offers and emails says inside view of transfer | OneFootball

Chelsea take on Fluminense in a couple of hours, and we’re really excited to see what team Enzo Maresca puts out.

There are a few decisions to make, with some players returning from suspension and others starting new suspensions.

New signing Joao Pedro could get first start – or feature off the bench

Joao Pedro in action for Chelsea against Palmeiras. (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

There was some surprise for our quarter final match against Palmeiras last week when the Italian coach selected Liam Delap up front rather than Nicolas Jackson, who was freshly returned from suspension. That surprise grew much more severe when the coach opted for Joao Pedro to come off the bench instead of Jackson later in the game.

The new signing had only had a day of training with his new team before that game. Now he’s had a week. So will he start tonight? It still feels unlikely, but given the decisions made last week it can’t be ruled out.

Joao Pedro pursued by Chelsea for some time

While JP’s time at Chelsea still numbers in the days rather than weeks or months, the club’s interest in him goes back a lot further.

Simon Johnson’s piece for the Athletic this week outlines the fact that he’s been seriously on their radar since January, and was “solidified as a main target” in May.

The Blues made an initial offer of over £50m two weeks ago, and them quickly moved into more talks with Brighton CEO Paul Barber over the course of 48 hours.

The good trading relationship between the two clubs is summed up by the fact that these offers were made “during cordial conversations” rather than “sending anything formal… over email.”

In the end, Brighton got more than £50m and a sell on fee, and Chelsea got their hands on a player who could help them win the Club World Cup – and a lot more.