Chelsea's Joao Pedro breaks silence on punch-up that saw him BANNED by Brighton

Joao Pedro has broken his silence on his bust-up with former teammate Jan Paul van Hecke.

Brazil striker Pedro was axed for Brighton's final two games of the Premier League season after a training ground punch up with van Hecke. That row was in the background as Brighton then sold Pedro to Chelsea for £60m and it cast a shadow on his exit.

But Pedro insisted it was just two committed players wanting to win and also he has nothing to apologise but only good memories of Brighton.

Pedro said: “I think the people who know me know my character but when two players want to win, these things happen and this is normal.

“It was just two players in the moment, we both wanted to win. But like I said, I now play for Chelsea so I just want to talk about Chelsea.I had a good time at Brighton but now I’m in Chelsea, I just want to talk about Chelsea.”

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Chelsea meet Fluminense in the semi-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup, with former Blues defender Thiago Silva leading the Brazilian side.

Silva is now 40 and still going strong as he prepares to face his former club in the MetLife Stadium but still keeps in regular contact with Chelsea.

Brazil legend Silva, who had four glorious years at Stamford bridge, paid a recent visit to the training ground and joked that he can provide some inside knowledge on Enzo Maresca’s tactics.

Silva said: “I’m trying to help the coaching staff with small details, things that will stay between us. I was saying earlier that I was in London not too long ago visiting my kids, went to some training sessions, you know. I don’t know Maresca that well, but I know a lot of the players there, and I talk to them pretty much every week, some of them are really close to me.

“I’m happy to have this matchup, and it’s going to be a special day for me, but it will be even more special if we manage to go through.”

Silva won the Champions League during his time at Chelsea and the fans still sing his name. “He came from PSG to win the Champions League.” Now, incredibly, he could help Fluminese knock out Chelsea and then potentially face PSG in the final.

He added: “It means a lot. Thank God, I was able to build a beautiful story with both of these clubs, Chelsea and PSG. And now, at what you could call the final stage of my career, I’m still living important moments and trying to help in the best way I can.

“Like I said, it would be special to eliminate Chelsea, even with all the love I have for them, but when you’re on the pitch, you have to focus on your own team.

“I’m just really grateful for everything I went through there. It was a very special team in my life, where I won one of the biggest titles of my career, and facing them now definitely won’t be easy.

“After the tournament, my support for Chelsea and PSG will always be there. I’m forever grateful to those clubs, I did everything I could while I was there, and I’ll keep doing the same for Fluminense. Hopefully, we can get this qualification.”

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