Xabi Alonso Compares Joao Pedro to Benzema and Haaland

Joao Pedro has been in England long enough to know the weight of Chelsea’s number nine shirt. He is also learning what it means when your manager starts mentioning your name in the same breath as Karim Benzema and Erling Haaland.

Three games into the new Premier League season, the 24-year-old has two goals, two assists and now the league’s Player of the Month award in his hands. On Friday, that form was given its most striking endorsement yet.

Asked if Joao Pedro could be compared to Manchester City’s Haaland, Xabi Alonso didn’t flinch.

“I would say yes,” the Chelsea manager replied. “If you count how many top strikers we have in the Premier League, I'm sure that Joao is there, Haaland for sure is there. So I would rate him that way.”

That is not a throwaway line. Haaland is the reigning Golden Boot winner with 27 league goals last season and 42 goals plus nine assists in his last 57 matches for City. To even be placed on the same tier is a statement of intent about where Alonso believes his forward belongs.

A new number nine with old-school numbers

Joao Pedro arrived at Stamford Bridge last summer and quietly broke a barrier that had stood since the Diego Costa era. In his debut campaign he became the first Chelsea striker since Costa to hit 20 goals in a single season, finishing the year with 25 goals and 11 assists in 57 appearances.

Those numbers earned him more than just applause. Last month he signed a new contract to stay at the club until 2034 and was handed the fabled number nine shirt at the start of this season. Some players shrink under that history. Joao Pedro has started by embracing it.

The early returns underline why Alonso is so bullish. Two goals, two assists in three league games, Player of the Month secured, and a growing sense that Chelsea finally have a focal point who can both finish and create.

Not just a finisher – a Benzema-style reference point

Alonso knows elite forwards. He spent years at Real Madrid feeding Benzema, sharing a dressing room with a striker who evolved from finisher to all-round orchestrator. When he looks at Joao Pedro, he sees echoes.

“In many things he reminds me of Benzema,” Alonso said. “Because he is good in the box, he is good out of the box, he is good coming to his left side, he is good with the head, he is very complete, he is intelligent.

“So yes, he is still young, still things to develop, but many, many absolutely outstanding qualities that he has.”

Benzema’s résumé is the benchmark: 523 goals in 994 appearances for France, Lyon, Real Madrid and Saudi Arabian sides Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal. To compare a 24-year-old to a former Ballon d'Or winner with that catalogue of success is bold, but Alonso is clear about the stylistic similarities.

Haaland is a specialist, a penalty-box predator who lives on the shoulder of the last defender. Joao Pedro has taken a different route. He has played as a midfielder, a number 10 and a winger during his career. He drops deep, links play, drifts wide, attacks crosses, presses from the front. Where Haaland devastates with one primary weapon, Joao Pedro offers a broader armoury.

That versatility is what makes the Benzema comparison ring truer than a simple goals tally. Chelsea’s Brazilian is becoming a reference point for the entire attack, not just its finisher.

From World Cup pain to international recall

Not everything has come easily. This summer, Joao Pedro watched the World Cup from afar after a surprise omission from Brazil’s squad by national coach Carlo Ancelotti – the same Ancelotti who once managed Alonso at Real Madrid.

The snub hurt.

“It was painful for him, but that is in the past,” Alonso admitted. “We are now focused on what he is doing well and what he can do better.

“He had enough motivation. He already had enough within him, so I didn't need to go there.”

The response has been emphatic. Brazil have taken notice. Joao Pedro has been recalled for September’s international fixtures against New Zealand and India, a swift correction that reflects his surge in form at club level.

Alonso has seen more than goals and assists.

“He has been outstanding,” the Chelsea manager said. “Not just in football terms, but in his personality, his maturity and his desire. He has a very clear goal this season, which is to have a great campaign and score a lot of goals.”

A striker with a decade to define

Chelsea have tied Joao Pedro down until 2034 because they see a forward who can lead their line for the long haul, not just ride a hot streak. At 24, with the number nine on his back and his manager comparing him to Benzema and ranking him with Haaland, the expectations are set.

The Premier League already knows what a ruthless specialist like Haaland looks like. The question now is whether Joao Pedro, with his broader canvas and Benzema-style influence, can shape Chelsea’s next era in his own image.