West Brom player all but confirms loan deal being made permanent, says goodbye to former club
Matheus Pereira has all but confirmed his permanent move to West Brom by saying a heartfelt goodbye to Sporting CP.
West Brom signed Pereira, 24, on a season-long loan last summer but had the obligation to sign the Brazilian permanently if he made more than 30 starts or the club were promoted to the Premier League.
Both of those have since happened and a £9million permanent deal is as good as done except there has not been any official word from either club as of yet.
But Pereira’s latest message to Sporting suggests that the deal is done and he won’t be returning to Lisbon any time soon.
“I will always have a feeling of gratitude to Sporting, for the time I was at the club,” Pereira told Canal 11, as quoted by Portuguese newspaper Record. “It has been almost 12 years. I am grateful to Sporting for giving me this opportunity, for opening the door to Europe.
“Of course, when I became a West Brom player I was super happy, it’s a new story that will start.
“I think I had an excellent season. I had good times, games and exhibitions. But I wouldn’t be able to do that without having a good squad and a good coach. It was the best year I had as a professional.”
Although he failed to shine in the last few matches of the season, Pereira has been one of the stand-out players for the Baggies in the Championship.
The South American dazzler scored eight goals and supplied a staggering 20 assists in 42 Championship appearances for Albion this term, playing a huge role in their automatic promotion to the Premier League.
We cannot wait to see what Pereira can produce in the top-flight now that West Brom’s promotion has been confirmed.
To put it mildly, the Championship has been too easy for the 24-year-old, who is destined to shine in the Premier League in blue and white stripes.
In other West Brom news, in an exclusive story by this site, the Baggies have opened talks over a new contract for this attacker.
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