2:56 FREE TO WATCH: Neto’s stunning strike for Wolves against West Ham
There is the hint of a smile on Nuno’s face that suggests he is revealing only half the story when asked about Neto’s belief in himself.
“He is a confident boy,” he says.
When Jimenez was asked to name the player who would be a nightmare to be stuck in isolation with, he named the youngest and the loudest. Speaking to Jonny Otto recently, he confirmed that Neto never stops talking.
Again, this tallies with the boy Araujo remembers.
“Nothing fazed him,” he recalls. “He has an amazing will to succeed. That makes him different. He is very confident. Of course, you have to have the ability, the intensity, the speed, the decision-making, but there are other kids in our academy who have those things. Maybe they lack that mentality. Pedro has shown that at every moment.”
- Sign up for goal alerts
- Live on Sky: Chelsea vs Wolves
Even so, it is one thing to be the standout star at a provincial academy in Portugal. Quite another to swagger into a Premier League dressing room with such obvious self-belief.
A dressing room, of course, that includes European champions such as Rui Patricio and Joao Moutinho. The latter made his international debut when Neto was five years old.
But perhaps that is the point – the key difference between Lazio and Wolves.
“The Portuguese guys that we have here – the staff and the players – have helped me a lot,” says Neto. “Experienced players like Joao and Rui, they have been very good for me. They have helped me to improve my game and to learn things from them.
“The coach knows our culture too. But the English guys have also been comfortable with me, they have given me all the confidence to do what I want, be myself and play my game.”
But does he talk too much?
He laughs.
“It is true,” he admits.
“It is the way that I am, you know. I like to be good company, a good team-mate. I am very happy here and I stay with my team-mates until the end.”
Chelsea vs Wolves
July 26, 2020, 3:00pm
Live on
Get Sky Sports Get a Sky Sports pass
These are the still early days in his development, of course. It is not yet clear what is his best position. He has the pace to play on the left wing, beating opponents on the outside, but he has shown a real goal threat cutting inside onto his favoured left foot from the right flank.
Nuno is open to using him as a striker too. “He has good knowledge of the game and he is versatile enough to play in all the positions across the front three,” says the Wolves boss.
That reflects the physical work that Neto has put in. Predictably, his idol is Cristiano Ronaldo. A gym has been installed at his home in Wolverhampton.
“One of the things that I have improved a lot here is how to use my body strength,” he says. “I have improved a lot tactically too. I think those two factors have been very important.
“I will play where the manager wants because the only thing that I want is to play. I feel confident on the wing and in the middle. I only want to enjoy my game.”
For now, much of the focus at Wolves is on their top scorer Jimenez, while the chief source of excitement comes in the form of the phenomenon that is Adama Traore.
But while some might fear the loss of the big names at Molineux, there is a feeling in some quarters that perhaps the team’s next superstar is already within the group.
“I think he is growing fast,” says Jonny when asked about his young team-mate’s vast potential. “He is really developing. He has a long way to go still and a lot more to give.”
Imitating Ronaldo might be impossible. For Neto, the only option is to try.
“If I do not approach it this way, I do not have the motivation to play football. I want to be the best so I work every day to do it. I will continue to work every day to be the best.”
That is half the battle. It is why Nuno has such high hopes for him.
“This is a big step in the growing process of a player, knowing that every day is important,” adds Nuno. “He is mature enough to understand that to compete at the highest level – the Premier League – there cannot be days off.
“When Pedro joined us, it was clear to him and to everybody that there was a window of opportunity for him to really grow as a player. He has opened that window.”
Sourse: skysports.com
