Portugal fans are all saying the same thing about Chelsea star Pedro Neto after beating Norway
Pedro Neto was crucial to Portugal’s win over Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard’s Norway on Sunday night, as the Chelsea winger continued his solid start to the 2026-27 campaign.
It has been a difficult 12 months for Neto. Whether or not losing close friend Diogo Jota had an impact on the wide man is unclear, but Neto failed to hit the heights that he has previously shown at Chelsea.
The 26-year-old still managed to have a hand in 20 goals during 52 appearances for the Blues last term, but fans would have been open to his exit in the summer. Chelsea wanted a huge £100m for Neto.
Under Xabi Alonso, he has played an important role this season – starting four of Chelsea’s five Premier League games. He’s scored against Brighton and Leeds, and took that form into the international break.
Portugal fans like what they’re seeing from Pedro Neto
This season, Neto has largely been used as a right wing-back with Reece James deployed in midfield and Marco Palestra yet to shake off an injury sustained in the summer. But for Portugal, he played wide left.
Chelsea signed more experienced players this summer to get SERIOUS! What impact has it made on the team so far? 🤔
Under new manager Jorge Jesus, Portugal have made the perfect start – beating Wales and then Norway on Sunday. A tricky game against an improving Norway that knocked Brazil out of the 2026 World Cup.
Neto got the assist for his old Chelsea pal Joao Felix to open the scoring, while Goncalo Ramos – who was linked with Chelsea before joining Milan – got the winner after Erling Haaland had equalised for Norway.
Portugal fans were impressed with Neto, who lasted until the 87th minute. Many praised his versatility, with one Portugal fan posting: “Pedro Neto is our triathlete: he runs, cycles, and swims.”
Another said: “Pedro Neto isn’t anywhere near as bad as Chelsea fans make him out to be”, clearly impressing against Norway on Sunday. Neto earned his 32nd cap for Portugal during the 2-1 victory.
“Baller” was the verdict from another Portugal fan, while one praised the connection between Neto and PSG left-back Nuno Mendes: “Nuno Mendes and Pedro Neto with good understanding on the left side.”
Another fan posted this: “Pedro Neto is finally playing well, and you can see a clear difference between Roberto Martinez’s Portugal and Jorge Jesus’ Portugal.” It seems Neto gave a good account of himself.
Pedro Neto’s stats from Portugal’s win over Norway
Neto was given a rating of 7.6 for his performance on the night, joint-fifth for Portugal alongside another former Chelsea player in Villarreal defender Renato Veiga. But the stats suggest he endured a poor game.
Clearly, his assist played a big role in getting such a good score from FotMob. Neto completed only one of his four attempted dribbles, while losing a worrying seven of his nine duels during the 2-1 victory.
Neto only touched the ball 41 times despite playing 87 minutes before eventually being replaced, misplacing five of his 25 attempted passes. The stats suggest a poor display, but fans were left impressed.
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