João Pedro: “My Goal Is To Score 15”

João Pedro has set himself a target of 15 goals in his quest to fire the club back to the Premier League.

The Brazilian teenager banged in five goals before the end of November to catapult the team into the play-off positions before an injury ruled him out of five league games.

He made his comeback against Manchester United on Saturday, playing the full 90 minutes in a very sprightly display, and now wants to get back among the goals in the Championship.

“It was a long time since I last played,” said the forward. “It was a great experience for the whole team [to play at Old Trafford] and I'm now working hard to prepare for the next game. It's been really difficult being stuck at home for a while watching my teammates play. It wasn't easy. Now I'm happy to be back with the team. My goal is to score 15, so I have a few to go, but if I keep working hard, then I am confident I can make it.”

João Pedro has now been in England for more than a year and has bulked up considerably, become more durable and acclimatised nicely to the rough and tumble of football in this country.

“I think I have adapted to English football,” he said. “It's different because there is more contact, it's a contact game, but I try my best every day and I think I am improving. The main thing I'm learning from English strikers is to be very offensive, to always attack the line, to be on the edge of the box and to push the opponents on the line.

“When I got here I was a bit scared because of the language barrier. Now I understand more and it's easier to live better on and off the pitch. Hopefully it will be a better year, an important year and hopefully we are going to go up. Hopefully I am going to be here for many years.”