‘I would go there’ – Premier League ace implores teammate to snub top-flight rivals for Liverpool | OneFootball

The teammate of one Premier League player at the epicentre of transfer speculation has advised him to consider joining Liverpool, despite his preference seemingly being elsewhere.

Ben Jacobs claimed earlier this week that Joao Pedro is among four strikers on the Reds’ shortlist of potential replacements for the seemingly exit-bound Darwin Nunez, although Newcastle and Chelsea have also been strongly linked with Brighton’s number 9 (The Telegraph).

There’s an acceptance at the Amex Stadium that the 23-year-old will leave this summer, and one Seagulls player has made the case for a move to Anfield.

Igor Julio implores Joao Pedro to consider joining Liverpool

Speaking to Diogo Magri of Trivela (via Sussex World), Brighton defender Igor Julio said: “João Pedro had already told Brighton some time ago that his desire was to leave, seek new things, take the next step. It seems it will be difficult and complicated for him to stay here. We have to be honest, the club already knows that.”

The Seagulls’ number 3 continued: “I told him that he has to think about what he wants from his career. In my opinion, if I were going to a ‘big 6’ team, I would go to a team that competes in the Premier League, plays in the Champions League and is always in a position to win.

“I would go to Liverpool and I think he would fit in perfectly at Liverpool. It’s because I’ve always dreamed of playing for Liverpool and I would go there. He always told me that he really wants to live in London, so I think he will prioritise what comes from there first.”

(Photo by Charlie Crowhurst/Getty Images)

Pedro is talented but Liverpool will have concerns over temperament

Julio’s reasons for encouraging Pedro to snub his capital-based suitors for the Reds make perfect sense, with Arne Slot’s side the reigning Premier League champions and likely to be in the market for a new centre-forward this summer.

Having hit double figures in the top flight last season and scored 30 times in 70 Brighton appearances since his £30m move from Watford two years ago, the Brazilian has proven that he can be potent at the highest level of English football.

Some of his underlying performance figures are also impressive. As per FBref, he ranks among the top 3% of strikers in Europe’s five main leagues over the past year for progressive carries per game (3.05), the top 4% for progressive passes per 90 minutes (3.6), and the top 10% with his match averages for shot-creating actions (3.33) and successful take-ons (1.34).

Those numbers would indicate that Pedro is an all-action centre-forward, but sometimes he can take that description too literally, to the detriment of his team.

He picked up a three-match ban in April for petulantly lashing out at Nathan Collins in Brighton’s 4-2 defeat to Brentford, and no sooner had he served that suspension than he was sidelined by Fabian Hurzeler for a reported altercation with teammate Jan Paul van Hecke in training (The Athletic).

Those episodes must surely raise a major red flag for the Liverpool hierarchy when shopping for a new striker, and if the Brazilian’s preference is for a move to London, Richard Hughes might duly find it difficult to convince the 23-year-old to come to Anfield instead.

Julio’s advice is sound, but if Pedro chooses not to heed it, then LFC needn’t waste too much time on the latter and can instead look elsewhere as they seek a prospective replacement for Nunez.