WOLVERHAMPTON, England (AP) — Wolverhampton midfielder Matheus Nunes is refusing to train with the team in a bid to force through a move to Manchester City.
City has reportedly had a bid of around 47 million pounds ($60 million) for Nunes rejected by Wolves, which only signed the Portugal international in the 2022 offseason.
City has yet to make an improved bid, Wolves manager Gary O'Neil said, with the transfer window closing on Sept. 1.
“He’s not with the group at the moment, his choice,” O’Neil said of Nunes. “After the bid from Manchester City, he decided it was best for him to not be with the group. Club policy and how we deal with things like that is set in place.
“As far as I’m aware there’s been no improved bid. Matheus Nunes is still our player, we have a long contract still with him and at this moment I fully expect him to be here come Sept. 2. The next few days will be key, of course, and conversations will take place that will be private between me and Matheus and I’m sure the situation will be resolved.”
Speaking after Wolves' 5-0 win over Blackpool on Tuesday, O’Neil stopped short of criticizing Nunes’ actions, saying he first needed to speak to the player.
“You never need (to stop training) but players do,” O'Neil said. “You’ve seen it all over the country, I’ve seen it when I was playing, we’ve seen it in recent transfer windows, I can think of one in January, and it won’t change how the club deals with any bids or any situation.
“He definitely didn’t (need to) and there is a way to deal with these things but I’ll keep most of my thoughts private for when I speak with Matheus. I will speak to him and there will be advisors and representatives and there’s a lot of things that go on — it’s too simplistic to say ‘he’s done this and we think that.' There’s a lot involved in situations like this."
City lost Ilkay Gundogan, who joined Barcelona after his contract expired, and signed fellow central midfielder Mateo Kovacic as a replacement. However, that's not a like-for-like replacement, with Kovacic operating in deeper areas than Gundogan, who often played as an attacking midfielder just off Erling Haaland.
The 25-year-old Nunes typically plays further forward than Kovacic so would offer something different to City manager Pep Guardiola, who is also without the injured Kevin De Bruyne.
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