27 | Matheus Nunes - 2024/25

[noseve]

As usual some fans employing their usual double standards and loading onto a player who has been asked to play in a position he was not recruited to do. As somebody has just commented Gvardiol gets a free ride for his mistakes and he's now been playing full-back for 2 seasons. Yes Nunes has made mistakes but remember G''s mistakes in the Feyenoord and how costly that turned out to be. Give the guy a break and thank him for having the balls to play when asked. A certain highly paid CF bottled out of taking a penalty in the Cup Final when that was his job.

Agree with most of that, and have had multiple goes at Gvardiol myself, but this isn't a competition between players - it's the Nunes thread?

To play devil's advocate, did you really thank him, after the first derby?

 

[Yue Wollongong]

I was not convinced that Nunes was a clever enough player for City two months ago. Now while I still don’t think Nunes is clever enough to play midfielder as Pep said, I believe he earned himself the starting RB position for next season and thereafter. He is obviously hungrier than many others. He has pace and body to defend as well as high press and overlap and penetrating defence lines.

 

[pee dubya]

Clearly hasn't been forgiven for the derby disaster by some.

Makes one mistake in a game, like every single other player makes at least one mistake in a game, but in his case it's evidence of not being good enough. His general performances have been really good.

This time last season I would have sold him, but now he's a definite keeper for next season. He's got all the tools to lock down the right back spot.

 

[Blue_Lightsaber]

He's our Forrest Gump!

He may be the worst, but he sure can play Right Back!

 

[WallyA]

Selling him after all the good work into developing him into a RB seems like a waste.

Yes, we are gonna sign a RB anways (my pick is Vanderson), but I don't want Rico Lewis being a back RB.

He cannot do the wide role at all, he would have to play inverted, and even then, I'd rather Rico just be a backup midfielder at that point.

 

[ninjamonkey]

These days, with seemingly every single second of football caught on film, any player can put together a decent highlights reel.

At a lower level, players are generally defined by these highlights.

At the top, though - and this is the case for every player at City, nailed-on starter and occasional sub alike - players tend to be defined by their mistakes, as tight title races are usually decided (and remembered) by such things.

This is therefore the yardstick by which Nunes has to be judged, and by which it's pretty difficult to class him as anything but a failure. He seems a really nice, honest lad - and lately he's shown a couple of flashes of what could be, if he only had the confidence to trust himself and play on the front foot more.

The problem is that even when he makes us doubters eat our words, such as the explosive run leading to Gundo's Fulham goal, it's only a matter of time before he does something like run the ball out of play without anybody within 20yds of him. I mean, that was frankly comical, wasn't it? Harmless on that occasion though, unlike quite a few of his other aberrations. He's definitely cost us a lot more points than he's won.

Maybe a loan out to where he'd be a bigger fish for a season could light some sort of fire in him? Failing that, I can't ever see him changing anybody's opinion, not while he's still here, anyway.

Would you not take him harmlessly running it out of play every game in return for the key action that nobody else in the side offers that led to the crucial opening goal in a game? His mistakes may seem basic at times and therefore they're highlighted a lot more, he's also been deeply unfortunate in that his mistakes have cost us but he's not making more mistakes than anybody else.

I take it we are defining everybody by the same standards you're judging Nunez? Gvardiol and Dias have made far more mistakes so I suppose they aren't good enough either?

As for him costing us more points than he's won. He absolutely has not. I suggest you have a think and take a look at his stats, 3rd top assister in the squad and a more than respectable goal return.

in the run in alone, he was directly responsible for our opener at fulham, he scored the vital winner with the last kick against villa, provided the assist for O'Reilly at Everton and was solid as anybody defensively. What more do you want?

 

[dhruvblue]

People forget we spent 50 odd mil on Mendy, 15 odd mil on Gomez, 60 mil on Cancelo.

Cancelo was the best of those 3 but he had a grand total of 22 assists for City over 4 seasons.

Nunes already has 13 assists this season so he's far from a total waste.

Give the man some credit.. he's working hard and the resulting numbers are looking good where the club is getting actual value for money spent. He's not on Cancelo's 275k a week or have his attitude. And he's what 26?

He was what unusable by Pep before and if we have patience for the finished product (admittedly not many do), he'll be some player.

I think he actually has a good chance of being Pep's most improved player ever!

Gomez a non cheap prospect who is gone is still being criticised

Lol

 

[King Jay]

Selling him after all the good work into developing him into a RB seems like a waste.

Yes, we are gonna sign a RB anways (my pick is Vanderson), but I don't want Rico Lewis being a back RB.

He cannot do the wide role at all, he would have to play inverted, and even then, I'd rather Rico just be a backup midfielder at that point.

I don’t think Lewis will survive. His only luck is that he is association trained and homegrown. Shouldn’t be the backup RB at all. The drop in quality is too high. Would rather loan him out

 

[Tevez City]

Have a look @twosips

 

[noseve]

Would you not take him harmlessly running it out of play every game in return for the key action that nobody else in the side offers that led to the crucial opening goal in a game? His mistakes may seem basic at times and therefore they're highlighted a lot more, he's also been deeply unfortunate in that his mistakes have cost us but he's not making more mistakes than anybody else.

I take it we are defining everybody by the same standards you're judging Nunez? Gvardiol and Dias have made far more mistakes so I suppose they aren't good enough either?

As for him costing us more points than he's won. He absolutely has not. I suggest you have a think and take a look at his stats, 3rd top assister in the squad and a more than respectable goal return.

in the run in alone, he was directly responsible for our opener at fulham, he scored the vital winner with the last kick against villa, provided the assist for O'Reilly at Everton and was solid as anybody defensively. What more do you want?

Maybe I was wrong to use the term 'defined' - judged would have been better.

As for him being given a bum wrap, on the contrary - I think that he's been given far too much leeway for 'being played out of position'. His errors have not been down to finding himself in unfamiliar areas of the pitch, but basic lapses in concentration.

Some of his passes and clattering into opponents have been fundamental schoolboy stuff that cannot be excused by 'but he's not a right back'.

It's not just mistakes, either - it's what another player might have achieved from all those situations on the corner of their box, where he simply turned as if on auto-pilot to play it backwards.

I did qualify my opinion, as there has been the odd glimpse of what he could be like if he was more assertive. But there are plenty of players with potential who never fulfil it.

 

[Earlyriser]

Maybe I was wrong to use the term 'defined' - judged would have been better.

As for him being given a bum wrap, on the contrary - I think that he's been given far too much leeway for 'being played out of position'. His errors have not been down to finding himself in unfamiliar areas of the pitch, but basic lapses in concentration.

Some of his passes and clattering into opponents have been fundamental schoolboy stuff that cannot be excused by 'but he's not a right back'.

It's not just mistakes, either - it's what another player might have achieved from all those situations on the corner of their box, where he simply turned as if on auto-pilot to play it backwards.

I did qualify my opinion, as there has been the odd glimpse of what he could be like if he was more assertive. But there are plenty of players with potential who never fulfil it.

I

 

[Earlyriser]

I

I

If you start criticising a player for passing back the whole of the City side have been guilty of that all season. Again look at the under hit back pass by G in the Bournemouth game leading to K's sending off.

 

[noseve]

If you start criticising a player for passing back the whole of the City side have been guilty of that all season. Again look at the under hit back pass by G in the Bournemouth game leading to K's sending off.

Yes they have, Gavrdiol in particular gave me nightmares until he was moved to CB - but this is the Nunes thread.

 

[Churchlawtonblue]

Keep for me. Now has far more positives to his game than negatives.

 

[threespires]

Keep for me. Now has far more positives to his game than negatives.

I see he's on Tolmie's list of players who will apparently be encouraged to leave. Think that's a shame. He mightn't be a nailed on starter in a strengthened squad but he seems to have a good attitude, is coachable and flexible and we need players like that given the amount of games we play.

 

[Alvin-blue-qhd]

I see he's on Tolmie's list of players who will apparently be encouraged to leave. Think that's a shame. He mightn't be a nailed on starter in a strengthened squad but he seems to have a good attitude, is coachable and flexible and we need players like that given the amount of games we play.

If even he was encouraged to leave, it means the club has very high expectation for the new season. That's a good thing. I'd like to see if the replacement can reach the same level...

 

[Churchlawtonblue]

I see he's on Tolmie's list of players who will apparently be encouraged to leave. Think that's a shame. He mightn't be a nailed on starter in a strengthened squad but he seems to have a good attitude, is coachable and flexible and we need players like that given the amount of games we play.

Well with no disrespect to Tolmie, he does seem to be more wrong than right, I hope it's the former on this one.

 

[oldius]

I read today that Forest are considering a swap deal of Nunes and MGW. I would like Nunes to stay, tbh, but if we are investing in a right-back, and don't consider Nunes to be able to perform in central midfield, then it would make sense. I would like him to stay so I hope it is just the usual social-media guff.

 

[Dax777]

Matheus Nunes vs Feyernord. There is a physicality to his game that predates Pep's shackling. And you can see glimpses here.


He'll be immense next season in my opinion. Has all the tools necessary to be a successful fullback.

 

[mattcity5]

If you start criticising a player for passing back the whole of the City side have been guilty of that all season. Again look at the under hit back pass by G in the Bournemouth game leading to K's sending off.

It really wasn't an underhit back pass, it was a pass rolled to the side of Kovacic for him to move onto, but he was rooted on his heels and didn't move across to it soon enough.