Barcelona ‘intensify’ Joao Pedro pursuit with €100m Chelsea offer
15 May 2026 12:15 BST |
5 min read
Barcelona are intensifying their interest in Chelsea striker Joao Pedro amid reports that Robert Lewandowski has agreed a massive contract with Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal.
Barca are focusing their attention on the transfer market on the centre-forward role. In an ideal world, Lewandowski would stay with the Catalan side, yet reports from Poland indicate that he has agreed a €90 million-per-season contract with Al-Hilal.
With dream target Julian Alvarez of Atletico Madrid out of Barcelona’s reach financially, they have turned their attentions towards Joao Pedro and are ready to step up their interest in the Brazil striker, Globo reports.
Joao Pedro to Barcelona: The latest
The Blaugrana are ready to offer Chelsea €100 million for the 24-year-old and have even opened talks with the Premier League giants over a deal, according to the Brazilian source.
These discussions are in their early stages, but Globo claims that next week Barca sporting director Deco will ramp them up next week to understand the conditions of a deal.
If Lewandowski leaves, Barcelona want a signing lined up before the World Cup begins. This suggests that the deal could accelerate very quickly once Chelsea have played the FA Cup final on Saturday.
Chelsea’s transfer stance
Barcelona face a major challenge to sign Joao Pedro because Chelsea do not want to sell a forward who is under contract until 2033 and has an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €76m.
One of their top performers this season, Globo reports that the Blues have “no interest” in selling the player. This stance is echoed elsewhere. In the UK media, the Daily Mail describes Joao Pedro as being “untouchable” at Stamford Bridge.
Football transfer reporter Fabrizio Romano discussed the possibility of Joao Pedro signing for Barcelona on his YouTube channel:
“For Joao Pedro, my understanding is that Chelsea have absolutely no intention of letting Joao Pedro leave the club this summer. Chelsea believe the new project that has to start this summer, 2026, has to start with Joao Pedro as a crucial part of that.
“Chelsea want Joao Pedro to stay. I already told you Barcelona love Joao Pedro. Deco already wanted to sign Joao Pedro when he was at Brighton. Joao Pedro is a player super appreciated by Barcelona, that’s for sure.
“If Barcelona could go for Joao Pedro for a normal price, they would do that for sure, guaranteed. The conversations are real, but the chances? At this moment, Chelsea have absolutely no intention. Then summer is long. If anything changes, I will let you know. But as of today, Chelsea have no plans to let Joao Pedro go.”
João Pedro in Barcelona
If Barcelona were able to sign Joao Pedro, he would be a strong fit for Hansi Flick’s formation and style, according to data analytics firm SciSports.
Its Career Advice tool measures the strength of a transfer based on a wide variety of metrics, including development, game time, style and formation. It then calculates a Club Fit score, with the higher the figure the more suitable the transfer.
Barcelona only score 63 on this measure, but it does come with the caveat that this calculation still has Lewandowski in mind. The Pole is still rated by SciSports as the fourth-best striker in the world, which is why Joao Pedro’s projected playing time is so low.
Clearly there are some huge obstacles to overcome if Barca are to sign Joao Pedro, but the signs are that he would be a strong fit for Flick’s side if they could get the deal over the line.
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