Matheus Nunes is the latest high-profile transfer from the Primeira Liga to the English Premier League, the Brazilian-born Portugal midfielder joining Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Portuguese project.
Sporting had resisted overtures for their midfield dynamo all summer, but an offer of €50 million (€45m up front + €5m in add-ons) proved impossible to turn down. The 23-year-old is expected to complete the signing in time to make his debut on Saturday at Tottenham Hotspur.
Sporting left in the lurch
Rumours that the Lisbon club would sell Nunes have rumbled on throughout the summer. Just last week Nunes snubbed an offer from West Ham to switch to England, with Sporting coach Rúben Amorim saying: “In the past players were desperate to leave Sporting. Now they receive offers that can change their lives and they want to stay. It’s an excellent sign.”
A few days later and Nunes is all but gone, pending the medical exams and official confirmation. With the transfer occurring during Sporting’s preparations for the big clash against Bwin Liga rivals Porto on Saturday evening, there is no doubting it is a huge blow for the Lions’ aspirations of fighting for the title this season.
Matheus Nunes will be a Wolves player. An extraordinary signing. I cannot think of a better player to add explosiveness, energy and a genuine goal threat from central midfield. Fitting that he scored this rocket on Saturday, in his last game for Sporting. pic.twitter.com/hcclrMuQRf
— Alex Goncalves (@Aljeeves) August 16, 2022
Having lost fellow Portugal international João Palhinha to Fulham earlier in the summer, and with central midfielder Daniel Bragança out for several months as he recovers from a serious knee ligament injury, it is inevitable Sporting will seek a replacement.
Amorim has shown faith in the domestic market, a policy that has proven successful, and it is therefore no surprise that names such as Braga’s Al Musrati and Vitória’s André Almeida have been touted as possible replacements.
Nunes’ classic rags to riches tale
As for Nunes himself, it is the latest chapter of a heart-warming story from poverty to stardom in which football is so fertile.
The Brazilian came to Portugal a decade ago as a 14-year-old, settling in the small seaside town of Ericeira 45 kilometres north of Lisbon, joining the local football team and helping out his mother, with whom he is extremely close, who worked in a cake shop.
“Everything I’ve achieved, everything I am still to achieve in my career, will always be dedicated to my mother,” he said in an interview given to Brazilian outlet UOL Esporte. “I never had a father. It’s not important to talk about the reasons why, but I never had a father. My mother always took on the role of mother and father, and brought up her three children by herself.”
Nunes soon stood out at Ericeirense and was spotted by Estoril, for whom he played briefly before being snapped up by Sporting for a fee of under €1 million.
The president’s promise
Soon after Nunes was purchased, Sporting’s president Frederico Varandas boldly stated that: “the money generated by the future sale of Matheus Nunes alone will pay for us hiring Rúben Amorim.”
Varandas was defending himself against heavy criticism for paying Braga the €10 million release clause to entice the promising coach from the north to the capital. At the time the president’s claim made him the butt of jokes, but he has been proved right and then some.
Meteoric rise
Nunes gradually worked himself into Sporting’s first team, aided by Amorim’s propensity to trust in youth. Although he often had to bide his time on the bench with João Palhinha and João Mário the regular occupants of the central midfield positions, Nunes played a key role in the Lisbon club’s first championship title for 19 years, making 31 appearances.
A powerful No. 8, Nunes is especially adept at carrying the ball forward, his surging runs from deep a feature of his play. He also has a knack of scoring crucial goals, his late strikes to snatch victories at home to Benfica and away to Braga absolutely pivotal in ending Sporting’s title drought.
🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌#SCPSLB | 1-0 | #LigaNOS #DiaDeSporting pic.twitter.com/2ytci8hgTE
— Sporting Clube de Portugal (@Sporting_CP) February 1, 2021
Last season his game continued to improve, Nunes making himself one of the best players in Portugal and eliciting the highest of praise from Pep Guardiola, who described him as “one of the best players in the world,” after Sporting played Manchester City in the Champions League.
The gut-wrenching decision
Another important milestone in the midfielder’s career occurred last year. Uncapped at the time, he was simultaneously called up by Brazil and Portugal to debut for their full national team. After asking for some time to ponder, he opted for Portugal.
“I spoke to both federations and after thinking a long time I arrived at the conclusion that it would be better to play for Portugal. I think I’ll be happier here.” Nunes has 8 caps and 1 goal to his name in a Portugal shirt.
By Tom Kundert
