“It was a pity” – Alexandre Pato admits he 'never understood' the lack of chances he received at Chelsea despite training well

Brazilian international striker Alexandre Pato looks back at his time at Chelsea with a lot of regret. Pato was one of the many prominent forwards who failed to make a mark at Stamford Bridge over the years.

The Brazilian striker was signed by Chelsea back in January 2016 on a six-month loan deal from Corinthians. At the time, Guus Hiddink was in charge of the Blues as the interim manager following Jose Mourinho's sacking.

However, the former AC Milan forward could not make much of an impression at the West London club. Pato was restricted to just two appearances for the Premier League outfit, with both of them being off the bench.

The striker scored on his Blues debut, converting a penalty against Aston Villa and was also brought in as a substitute in the following game against Swansea City.

Pato has admitted that he regrets moving to Stamford Bridge as he feels he was overprotected by manager Hiddink.

He has also insisted that he would not have joined the Blues on loan had he known that they would not sign him on a permanent basis. Speaking to The Players' Tribune, the Brazilian international said:

"But when Chelsea called me, I was still dreaming of Europe. Unfortunately, I paid the price again for being overprotected. I still didn’t get it. I thought that Chelsea would loan me for six months and then I’d sign for three years. I didn’t realise that they could say no after the loan. Had I known? I would have gone elsewhere. It was a pity, because I was training really well, and the coach only played me twice. I never understood why."

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Pato is not the only striker to have regretted a Chelsea move

Since Didier Drogba, Chelsea have had plenty of trouble with strikers and their striker curse continues. Apart from Pato, several top-class strikers like Radamel Falcao, Hernán Crespo, Fernando Torres, and even Ballon d’Or winner Andriy Shevchenko have flopped at Stamford Bridge.

When Pato signed for the Blues, they had Diego Costa, Loic Remy, and Radamel Falcao at the club.

So, it can be said that the player also made a mistake in judgement by signing for the Blues. To be fair, Pato has not been able to revive his career after his forgettable spell at the West London club

The Brazilian will be remembered as one of the many top talents to fail to live up to the hype and expectations bestowed upon them by millions.