Weir: Joao has justified club record transfer fee

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Albion's technical director delighted with impact Brazil striker has made in his first season with the club.

Charlie Hanson

2024-06-06T06:00:00Z

Joao Pedro scored six goals in six Europa League appearances for Albion.

Technical director David Weir says Joao Pedro ‘hit the ground running’ in his first season in Albion colours.

The forward joined us from Watford last summer, going onto be our top scorer with 20 goals, including six in six appearances in our debut Europa League campaign.

“Joao Pedro is a South American player but with a very different pathway to coming here [compared to our other South American players]," David said. "He was in the country by the time he was 18 and playing for Watford.

“Joao is now a homegrown player for us by the nature of that pathway. He played in England, he’s played in the Premier League and now played for Brazil – plus he’s been successful in Europe. There’s a multitude of different facets to make it to this point and him being a great signing for us.

The forward made his Brazil debut in November 2023.

“He’s been able to adapt quickly and he’s hit the ground running although he’s still had a small period of adaptation. He’s also had a couple of small injuries that will have affected him a little bit. He’s our club record signing but he’s a very different signing to some of the others and in a category that is very much relatable to the other guys as well.

“He helps those guys to integrate because he’s used to being in England, he understands the complexities of coming from South America and some of the challenges that they face. These are things that can become very important for us.”

The signing of the 22-year-old was in preparation for our debut Europa League campaign, David said in his appearance on the Official Brighton & Hove Albion Podcast.

Assessing the season just finished Weir added, “When we spoke about the squad last year we were conscious that we were going to play in European football and we hadn’t done that before.

“We had our ideas and tried to prepare as well as we could and we did. We wanted to be competitive in the Premier League, but the benchmark was finishing sixth in the Premier League the previous season which is a high bar.

“The injuries take their toll and you don’t know if they’re going to come before or after the [transfer] window closes. If they do come in similar positions that can cause a problem for you.

“We felt that we had two players in every position going into what was going to be a challenging season but unfortunately we had some circumstances that counted against us.

Joao Pedro scored a wonderful goal in our 4-1 win over Crystal Palace.

“Those circumstances can present opportunities though – it’s how Jack Hinshelwood got his. Then you find out things you wouldn’t necessarily have found out.

“We will review and see what we could have done better, but sometimes things happen and you’ve got to try and get outcomes that still facilitate where you want to be.

“Winning the group in the Europa League, being in the top ten of the Premier League until the last week of the season aren’t little achievements, but let's not pretend that we don't want more.

“Sixth in the Premier League was a great feeling. It’s where we want to be, but other clubs have high targets as well.”