Could Manchester City's round peg that is Matheus Nunes potentially be sold this summer? At times during his first season, it didn't appear that there was a role for Nunes in Pep Guardiola's starting eleven. Now a new report indicates that he may be the most likely player to be sold by Manchester City this summer.
Sam Lee has reported for the Athletic that Matheus Nunes now seems to be the most likely player to leave City this summer. Lee adds that it is now expected that Bernardo Silva and Kevin De Bruyne will stay at Manchester City. It is further reported that Matheus Nunes could potentially be sold if the champions seek to bring in a midfielder to support Rodri. Furthermore, Lee also reports that Pep Guardiola wishes not to have a bloated squad next season and a player may have to make way to accommodate any new arrivals in Manchester City's midfield.
Matheus Nunes seems like a player who is a round peg trying to be forced into a square hole. At times during his first season at Manchester City Matheus Nunes showed that he has the quality to make an impact for the world champions. Given his pedigree and talent that is no surprise. He has proven his quality during his spells with Wolves and Sporting Lisbon. But he couldn't make a significant impact during his first season as the world champions.
Whether or not that was due to a period of adjustment from Nunes to Pep Guardiola's demands remains to be seen. But at times he didn't appear to have a clear role to play for Manchester City. The apparent strengths of Nunes don't appear to be ideally suited to Pep Guardiola's tactics. The Portuguese international tends to take more risks in possession with his dribbling which doesn't appear to suit the champion's style of play. Due to this, it appeared that he was a round peg being forced into a square hole. If he remains at Manchester City next season it will be fascinating to see if Nunes can play a more prominent role for Pep Guardiola. But with players like Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden and Mateo Kovacic all being Guardiola's preferred options in midfield Nunes may suffer from a lack of opportunity again next season.
Sam Lee's new report suggests that there is interest in Nunes from the Saudi Pro League. If the champions do receive a bid for the Portuguese international they may consider selling Nunes. The ball would then be in the court of Matheus Nunes with what he wants to do. Stay at the champions and become a square peg in a square hole or move on from Manchester City? That has the potential to become a story to watch for in the coming weeks.