Liam Rosenior has declared he would not swap Joao Pedro for any striker in world football after the Brazilian’s stunning hat-trick powered Chelsea to victory over Aston Villa.
The Chelsea head coach has overseen a resurgence since taking charge in January, and Pedro has been one of the biggest beneficiaries.
Once again leading the line with confidence, the forward delivered a clinical display against Villa, pushing his tally for the season to 17 goals.
For years, Chelsea have searched for a reliable No.9 capable of delivering consistently in the Premier League.
The club has not had a striker reach the 20-goal league mark since Diego Costa during the title-winning 2016–17 campaign.
Since then, several high-profile arrivals have struggled to replicate that level.
Romelu Lukaku returned to Stamford Bridge in a £97.5 million deal in 2021 but managed only 15 goals in all competitions during his first season back.
Meanwhile, players such as Alvaro Morata, Radamel Falcao and Gonzalo Higuain also failed to establish themselves as long-term solutions.
However, Rosenior believes Chelsea may finally have found their answer in Pedro. After the Brazilian’s latest scoring display, the manager placed him firmly among the elite forwards in the game.
“I think Joao is in that category now,” he said.
“Consistently in the two months that I’ve been here, he’s shown that level. He’s a world-class striker.”
Rosenior was also asked whether he would trade Pedro for some of Europe’s most prolific forwards, including Harry Kane, Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe, but the Chelsea boss made it clear he would keep his current striker.
“It’s disrespectful to Erling to compare him. I don’t know him really well but what I do know from the outside is that he’s a magnificent, world-class striker, but I wouldn’t swap Joao for anyone at this moment.
“He’s showing all of the attributes I want to see in my number nine.”
With Pedro hitting top form and confidence growing within the squad, Chelsea will now look to maintain their attacking momentum as the season enters a decisive stretch.
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