Chelsea winger Pedro Neto acknowledges that he must do more to impress head coach Enzo Maresca if he wishes to earn a regular starting spot.
Chelsea winger Pedro Neto has accepted that he must ‘improve his level’ if he is to hold down a regular starting spot under Enzo Maresca.
During the summer transfer window, the Portugal international was presented with the opportunity to leave Wolverhampton Wanderers for Stamford Bridge in a £54m deal.
Neto made the switch despite the array of competition for a place in the first XI, which he held down at Wolves whenever he was fully fit.
The 24-year-old can be satisfied with how he has began life in West London, making four starts and three substitute outings in all competitions.
As well as providing an assist against his former club in August, Neto scored his first Chelsea goal in Tuesday’s 5-0 demolition of Barrow.
Nevertheless, Neto has acknowledged that he is still going through a period of “adaptation” at Chelsea, admitting that he cannot not expect to start without making an impression on his boss.
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“I have to work even more”
As quoted by the Evening Standard, Neto says that he cannot afford to believe that he will get game time without putting in the hard yards in training.
He said: “When you arrive at a big club, it’s a new adaptation. Maybe in Wolverhampton, I was going to play maybe 90% of the games.
“Here, I have to work even more or maybe I’ll not play because the coach will rotate the players. It makes you play even better because you know that you have to work. With the amount of quality that we have here, no one can sleep. As the coach has said: ‘Everyone will not play every game’.
“We have to work hard and make for ourselves and continue to to do it every weekend, every training session, every game. It’s the mentality that I hope can take us to the top.
“At the moment, I’m not at my level, but I’m getting there. I know that I will arrive at my top form and I will enjoy it. I continue to work. I continue to work on my confidence, on my football, on the adaptation, and I hope to be [at full fitness] as soon as as I can.”
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Will Neto start against Brighton & Hove Albion?
Although Neto has made seven appearances for Chelsea in just over a month, he is yet to play longer than 63 minutes in a single game.
Maresca has already revealed that Neto is in direct competition with Noni Madueke for the right-wing spot, his rival for that position being rested against Barrow earlier this week.
With that in mind, Neto can expect to drop back down to the substitutes’ bench when Chelsea host Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday.