Joao Pedro laughs off Chelsea’s infamous ‘number nine curse’ as he hails Morgan Rogers impact and Cole Palmer wizardry

JOAO PEDRO insists he is not bothered by Chelsea’s ‘cursed’ number nine shirt. The Brazilian took on the new shirt number after being on fire for the Blues in pre-season, and then fired them to a 3-2 win over Fulham with a goal after 31 seconds and an assist for Cole Palmer too – seemingly dispelling any ‘curse’ on his royal blue shirt. Joao Pedro is not bothered by Chelsea’s number nine ‘curse’ Credit: Getty He was impeccable last night against Fulham Credit: Getty The curse is derived from the fact that the Blues have not had a really successful number nine since Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink – Tammy Abraham and Hernan Crespo have been the best of a bad bunch since him. Now Pedro, who scored 15 goals in the Premier League last season with the number 20 on his back, doesn’t think he’ll be affected by the ‘curse’. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! He smiled: “I just try to do my job. I don’t believe in that. “Every player is different, and now I have to try to score in every game possible. “I know my responsibility in the group is to score goals, but I don’t think shirt numbers decide that pressure.” Pedro carried the mantle for Chelsea last season in terms of goals, but if Monday night is anything to go by, Cole Palmer and new £117 million teammate Morgan Rogers are ready to help lessen the burden on him this season. All three of them scored against Fulham, with some fans already dubbing them the most frightening attack in the Premier League as most of their rivals fell short on the opening weekend. Palmer, in particular, looked back to his frightening best after he and Pedro were both left out of their respective World Cup squads and had the summer to rest. Most read in Sport BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS That, Pedro insisted, was a huge help for him, and so is the signing of Rogers. He added: “The summer was very good because I didn’t go to help Brazil in the World Cup, so I had a time to recover, relax a bit, and to be ready. “Cole and Morgan are special players. Everyone knows that. “I’m very grateful to play with them because I know if I make some runs like I did today, Cole and Morgan are gonna give the ball to me and I have to be ready to score – it’s very special. “If we move a lot, it will be difficult for defenders to pick us up because they can’t focus on one player. The manager lets us be free on the pitch, and we understand each other well. “I will enjoy this season with Morgan because I think we can achieve high.” With Rogers and Palmer by his side he looks even more dangerous Credit: Getty The trio are one of the most threatening in the Premier League it seems Credit: Getty A squad overhaul, a new manager, and a new system all seemed to help Xabi Alonso’s side – with regularly playing one game a week having most under the impression that they will drastically improve this season. And Pedro insisted that they are daring to dream of the biggest trophies again with those things in mind. He ended: “When you play for Chelsea, you always need to look for the biggest trophies, and I think today was a great game to show our power. “Hopefully we can continue like this in the season. “Everyone wants to be at Chelsea. It’s a big club, and it’s a pleasure to play here – I’m very happy here.” Comment now