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Newcastle will put ANOTHER offer in for £35m-rated Watford star Joao Pedro, with Brazilian forward ‘mystified’ by Hornets’ transfer stance – as club prefer to sell winger Ismaila Sarr amid Crystal Palace interest
- Newcastle are returning with an improved offer for Watford star Joao Pedro
- The Magpies had a £20million bid rejected but are confident of a compromise
- Rob Edwards’ side value him at £35m and their official stance is he is not for sale
- The Brazilian forward is said to be ‘mystified’ at the Hornets’ transfer position
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Newcastle are returning with an improved offer for Watford forward Joao Pedro after a £20million bid was rejected.
Sources say the second proposal is still expected to be way short of the Hornets’ £35m valuation, but there is confidence a compromise can be agreed.
Pedro, 20, played during Watford’s 1-1 draw at Birmingham in the Championship on Tuesday night and boss Rob Edwards said afterwards that he does not want to lose the Brazilian.
Newcastle will make an improved offer for Watford’s Joao Pedro after a £20m bid was rejected
Manager Rob Edwards has reiterated the club’s desire to keep the talented Brazilian forward
‘Joao Pedro is already a very good player,’ said Edwards. ‘I think he’s going to be an excellent footballer.
‘I do believe this is the right place for him at the moment. I think he would really benefit from playing a full season with us and obviously helping the football club to where we want to be.
‘I think he can play a huge part in that. I think he’s fully committed to that. He’s so mature for a young age, and he understands what he needs to do as well.
‘Joao is fully committed on the here and now, and obviously he can’t control anything that happens externally, so he’s dealing with everything very, very well.’
Newcastle have identified Pedro as a player of significant potential given his age and experience. Crucially, he can play out wide or as a central striker, the two positions Newcastle need to fill.
Newcastle have identified Pedro as a player of sizeable potential given his age and experience
But the Championship side would rather sell Ismaila Sarr amid interest from Crystal Palace
Pedro is reportedly keen to team up with Brazilian compatriots Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes at St James’ Park, and his team are said to be ‘mystified’ by Watford’s stance given they recently sold Emmanuel Dennis to Nottingham Forest for £20m.
He is now in his fourth season at Vicarage Road having joined from Fluminense in 2020, scoring 14 times from 76 appearances in all competitions since then.
Watford would prefer to sell winger Ismaila Sarr, who missed the Birmingham draw with a ‘minor hamstring injury’, amid transfer interest from Crystal Palace – although Patrick Vieira’s side are yet to bid for the Senegalese international.
Meanwhile, Newcastle are watching developments at Chelsea, with the quartet of Armando Broja, Conor Gallagher, Christian Pulisic and Callum Hudson-Odoi potentially leaving on loan should incomings arrive.
Forward Broja and midfielder Gallagher have been on Eddie Howe’s long-list of targets since the end of last season and it is thought he is a big admirer of the latter especially, who spent last year on loan at Crystal Palace.