The troubling manner in which Matheus Nunes forced through a move to Manchester City has emerged, and the lengths Wolves went to to avoid selling to Liverpool have also come to light.
Nunes, 25, was on Liverpool’s radar back in 2022, though the former Sporting Lisbon midfielder ultimately joined Wolves.
Wolves paid a then club record £38m to sign Nunes who quickly established himself as a regular starter without ever truly hitting the heights expected at Molineux last term.
However, Nunes’ stint with Wolves would last just a single season upon joining Man City for £53m on September 1.
City had originally bid for Lucas Paqueta of West Ham, though saw their pursuit fall through once the FA began investigating suspicious betting practices involving the Brazilian and yellow cards.
Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze was an alternative, but per the Telegraph, City believed signing Nunes would be a far simpler deal to pull off given Wolves’ financial woes. With the move coming so late in the window, securing a quick agreement was essential.
Now, a stunning report from the Telegraph has shed light on the ‘nuclear’ manner in which Nunes forced Wolves’ hand. Furthermore, why Liverpool did not act despite retaining ‘strong interest’ has been revealed.
Firstly, the report states that upon learning Wolves had rejected City’s opening bid worth £47m, Nunes ‘refused to train, took his boots home and went on strike’. From that point on, Nunes never made another appearance at Wolves’ training complex.
Wolves removed Liverpool clause in Nunes contract
Adding to the player’s frustrations is the remarkable claim there was a Liverpool-related clause in Nunes’ contract at Wolves.
Indeed, the Telegraph add ‘a clause entitling Jurgen Klopp to trigger a deal this summer (2023)’ was present in Nunes’ contract.
However, Wolves ‘removed’ the option earlier in 2023, thus presumably meaning Liverpool would have to pay full market value like any other interested party if Nunes were to be sold.
Liverpool turned to other options such as Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenberch. As such, when Wolves rejected City’s initial bid, Nunes seemingly believed he would be denied another high profile exit once again.
Alas, City upped the stakes and an improved £53m offer was quickly accepted. Nunes will have the chance to take his frustrations out on Wolves when his current and former side square off on Saturday in a 3pm kick off.
The reception Nunes receives at Molineux will certainly be one to monitor.
