Chelsea FC are on a bit of a striker crisis at the moment and are on the verge of signing Alexandre Pato from Corinthians in a bid to bolster their attack.
Although nothing has been made official yet, Chelsea FC are believed to have verbally agreed upon a set of terms with Pato and his agent, according to a report by ESPN Brazil.
The Brazilian striker was touted as one of the best strikers to watch out for in the future, when he signed for Italian giants AC Milan as a teenager. However, a string of unfortunate injuries often kept him out of action at the San Siro, and the Rossoneri finally had to let him go.
Pato’s agent has reportedly been in touch with the Chelsea FC officials for a long time, and the two parties have finally been able to strike up a deal that would bring the Brazilian striker to Stamford Bridge. The total deal is reported to be around the range of £9 million, which is just about the same price at which Transfermarkt quotes Pato’s market value.
Unavailable for London derby
Although he has played 61 games for Sao Paolo (on loan from Corinthians), Pato has not featured for them since November, and is lacking match fitness right now. Thus, he would most certainly miss the much anticipated London derby between Arsenal FC and Chelsea FC on Sunday.
However, at the age of 26, it may be said that Pato is in the prime of his career and can very well revive it with good performances for Chelsea FC. Another thing that the move for Pato could do is give current top marksman Diego Costa some competition up front.