To say it’s been a wild start to 2026 for Chelsea would be something of an understatement.
New Year’s Day brought news that Enzo Maresca had left the club, and on Sunday, interim manager Calum McFarlane oversaw a spirited 1-1 draw away to Manchester City.
Then, just a few hours after that, reports emerged of Strasbourg boss Liam Rosenior being in the capital to complete his move to become the new manager.
As if that wasn’t enough, the club now look set to make the most of the transfer window, and are eyeing a record-breaking move for someone who could send Pedro Neto packing.
Chelsea target Neto upgrade
In no small part due to the managerial situation and their general form, Chelsea went into Sunday’s game as massive underdogs.
However, while they were certainly second-best in the first half, the Blues looked just as good, if not better than City, in the second 45 and were more than deserving of their point.
However, while the likes of Reece James, Enzo Fernández and even Liam Delap all took the game to the hosts, there were a few starters who underwhelmed, with Neto perhaps being the worst of the lot.
After all, the Portuguese international failed to register a shot on target, missed one big chance, lost the ball 12 times, failed in 50% of his dribbles and registered an expected assists figure of just 0.02.
In other words, it was a disaster class in a huge game, and therefore, it makes sense that the club would be looking to sign an upgrade on the former Wolverhampton Wanderers star.
At least that is what they appear intent on doing, according to a report from Spain, which claims Chelsea are interested in Vinícius Júnior.
In fact, the report goes further than that, revealing that the Blues are now preparing an offer worth a whopping €150m for the Brazilian international, which is approximately £130m, which would be a new British record.
In good news for the West Londoners, Real Madrid have yet to come to an agreement with the winger on a new deal, and there is a belief that the player himself is open to the move.
With that said, it would still be a complicated and costly transfer to get over the line for Chelsea, but one well worth pursuing, especially as Vini Jr would be a monster upgrade on Neto.
How Vinícius Júnior compares to Neto
The first reason Neto should be worried about Chelsea potentially signing Vini Jr this year is the fact that he can and has played on both flanks before.
Sure, the Brazilian certainly favours the left, and is at his most potent there, but on top of playing numerous other positions on the pitch, he’s also made more than a few appearances off the right, for club and country.
However, the far more pressing concern for the Portuguese international is that his potential new teammate is simply more dangerous than he is.
For example, since the start of last season, the former Wolves star has scored 15 goals and provided 12 assists in 78 games, totalling 5298 minutes.
That comes out to a reasonable enough average of a goal involvement every 2.88 games, or every 196.22 minutes.
In stark contrast, the “world-class” Real Madrid star, as dubbed by Owen Hargreaves, has scored 27 goals and provided 27 assists in 83 appearances, totalling 6488 minutes.
That comes out to a far more impressive average of a goal involvement every 1.53 games, or every 120.14 minutes.
Finally, the former Santos gem also comes out miles ahead of the Blues star when comparing their underlying numbers.
For example, he does better across most metrics, such as non-penalty expected goals plus assists, shots on target, key passes, shot- and goal-creating actions, tackles won, and more, all per 90.
Vini Jr vs Neto
Statistics per 90
Vini Jr
Neto
Non-Penalty Expected G+As
0.54
0.43
Shots on Target
1.28
0.64
Passing Accuracy
79.3%
74.2%
Key Passes
2.18
1.86
Passes into the Final Third
1.79
1.22
Shot-Creating Actions
5.72
3.49
Goal-Creating Actions
0.77
0.35
Tackles Won
0.71
0.35
Successful Take-Ons
3.08
1.57
All Stats via FBref for the 25/26 League Season
Ultimately, Neto could still be a useful player for soon-to-be manager Rosenior, but if Chelsea really want to give him the best chance of success, they’d go out and sign Vini Jr to replace the former Wolves man.
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