“I wouldn’t swap João for anyone in this moment to be honest.”
Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior on how much he rates the Brazilian striker.
The Beginning
When João Pedro joined Chelsea from Brighton in the middle of the Club World Cup group phase, not many saw him as a striker. Most thought he was someone who could serve as Cole Palmer’s deputy, or a second striker, or perhaps a winger operating in half space. Even former Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca didn’t think he was an out-and-out striker and categorically stated that he wouldn’t score 20 goals in one season.
“João’s going to score goals and give us assists. He is not going to score 20 goals a year. He’s a different striker profile.” he said in October, 2025.
Well… João Pedro has scored 21 goals and assists combined in all competitions (14 goals and 5 assists in the Premier League), exceeding all expectations. With 9 games left to play in the Premier League this season, few will bet against him reaching the 20-goal mark in the Premier League.
No Chelsea striker has scored more than 20 league goals in the Premier League since Diego Costa recorded that figure in the 2016/2017 season. Costa is generally regarded as the best Chelsea striker since Didier Drogba left in 2015.
João Pedro vs. the Best in the World
Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior didn’t mince words when asked by a reporter if João Pedro is in the same world class category as Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappé, Manchester City’s Erling Haaland and Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane.
“I think João’s in that category now,” said Rosenior. “Consistently, during the two months that I’ve been here, he’s shown that level. He’s a world-class striker. I only talk about my players, it’s disrespectful to Erling to compare them. I don’t know Erling really well, what I do know is that from the outside he’s a magnificent world-class striker. But I wouldn’t swap João for anyone in this moment to be honest, because he’s showing all of the things and all the attributes I want to see in my No.9.”
João Pedro has scored 11 goals in all competitions in 2026. Erling Haaland has scored four. Harry Kane, the leading goalscorer in Europe’s top five leagues, has managed 15 goals. Kylian Mbappé, who has been struggling with injuries this year, has scored 9 goals in all competitions.
Clearly João Pedro has been in top form in 2026. That is likely down to changes that the new Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior, who joined from Strasbourg right after the New Year, made in his game.
Only Harry Kane has scored more goals, and only the England striker can boast of a better shot conversion rate (30%) than João Pedro (25%).
“For João the great thing is his age,” said Rosenior. “I know there are a lot of things he can improve on, which is really good, but the level that he’s operating on is at a world-class level. It’s my job and the club’s job and his job to keep him going like that.”
The sample size is small and therefore it’s too early to conclude that João Pedro is already a world-class striker. What makes Mbappé, Haaland, and Kane world-class is that they have been consistently scoring for a long period. This is only João Pedro’s first season where has scored more than 11 league goals.
Conclusion
He’s definitely on the right trajectory. And if he stays at Chelsea and continues to progress under Liam Rosenior, he could be looking at scoring more than 20 league goals next season.
One thing is for sure, surpassing Diego Costa’s record at Chelsea is within his reach if he stays fit and keeps improving. For now, world class is a possibility but he’s not there. Yet.
