Chelsea are reportedly monitoring the situation surrounding Roberto Pereyra at Watford, with the player also a target for La Liga giants Real Madrid.
If the report from The Mirror is to be believed, Real Madrid and Chelsea are both interested in Roberto Pereyra. The Watford attacker has less than two years left on his contract and the absence of an agreement to extend the deal has thrown caution to the wind, with the two clubs monitoring the Argentine’s situation at Vicarage Road.
Roberto Pereyra failed to establish himself much after his move to Italy. Although, the Argentine was regarded highly at Udinese, his spell at Juventus could be classified as a failure, with the attacker’s direct contribution tally really suffering in Italy – a combined 14 goals and 15 assists in 172 games.
His move to Watford though, has been an inspired one. Owned by the same group that runs Udinese, Pereyra has taken to Premier League better than Serie A. He did take time. But, the 2018-19 season has been a whirlwind one for him thus far. 5 goals in 11 games, with most of his goals earning Watford points, Pereyra is one of the reasons the Hornets find themselves at 8th on the Premier League table.
His form has caught the attention of Real Madrid and Chelsea, especially with Pereyra and Watford not reaching an agreement to extend the player’s contract, which is set to expire in 2020.
Real Madrid have no real need for attacking playmakers. But, there is an inherent need to add firepower and goals to the lineup, especially with Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale misfiring. Pereyra has shown he can take on the mantle of providing goals at Watford, that too from a wide area.
With Marco Asensio also not at his best right now and Vinicius Jr. being slowly blooded into the setup, Roberto Pereyra can become an able addition at Santiago Bernabeu.
At Chelsea, the problem is a bit different. Maurizio Sarri has had a brilliant start to life at Stamford Bridge. But, his wide options in attack are very limited, with Willian, Pedro, Eden Hazard and Callum Hudson-Odoi available at Sarri’s disposal. Pereyra has proven himself in the Premier League and would be a quality option for Sarri to consider.
Sarri’s priority does seem to be a recruit from Italy, with Federico Chiesa on the Chelsea radar. But, Pereyra will be within the budget and will not take time to adjust to surroundings in the Premier League. The Argentine might also prefer Chelsea compared to Real Madrid for the same reason of not having to adjust to a new league at such a crunch stage of his footballing career.
Any move to land Pereyra will have to wait till the summer though. The 27-year-old’s contract will have just 12 months left at the end of the season, which means he could be available for a cut-price fee. Chelsea and Real Madrid hold genuine interest. But, they might not be the only suitors by the time the summer arrives in 2019.
