Newcastle United have been linked with signing Joao Pedro from Watford, but the Brazilian has now signed a new contract at Vicarage Road.
The Hornets confirmed the news on Friday afternoon, announcing that the forward has extended his deal with the Championship side.
Pedro now has a contract with Watford until the summer of 2028, so it looks like his long term future belongs in Hertfordshire.
That’s a blow for Newcastle, who had hoped to sign the youngster. They tried to secure his services in the summer, and Fabrizio Romano even claimed that a deal was done.
He reported that Pedro would join the Magpies for £30million and sign a six-year deal at St James’ Park until 2028. One much later and he has signed a contract until 2028, but it’s with Watford.
New contract will likely end Newcastle’s immediate interest in Joao Pedro
News of Pedro’s new contract will surely end any chance of Newcastle signing him in January. This comes after the Athletic reported that he was still a target for Eddie Howe’s side.
That will be a blow to Howe and Dan Ashworth, who nearly brought Pedro to the North East last month. He was a key target, and was reportedly keen on a move to play alongside fellow Brazilians Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton.
But a deal couldn’t be reached, and Newcastle brought in Alexander Isak instead.
It felt like Pedro was a target that Sporting Director Ashworth would revisit, but that is surely no longer the case. He will therefore have to tear up any plans he had for Pedro and look at alternative options.
That isn’t a huge problem for Ashworth and Newcastle, who will have an extremely long list of potential forward options for upcoming transfer windows.
The only way Pedro could still be an option in the near future is if his shiny new contract includes a release clause. Otherwise he will be a Watford player for at least a few more years.
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