“I learned so much during my season at Wolves and I’m excited to continue improving in the Premier League, a division which brings the best out of me.”
Follow transfer deadline day with The Athletic
Nunes joined Wolves from Sporting in the summer of 2022 in a deal worth £38million ($46m) plus £4million ($5m) in add-ons. In his debut season at Molineux, he made 41 appearances in all competitions, scoring two goals and providing two assists.
The midfielder featured in two of Wolves’ opening three Premier League games this season, being sent off late on during their 4-1 home defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion last month.
City moved for Nunes in a bid to strengthen their midfield after their efforts to secure West Ham United’s Lucas Paqueta was derailed by an FA investigation over potential betting breaches.
Guardiola’s side have also lost Kevin De Bruyne to a hamstring injury, which required surgery that could see him spend up to four months out.
Nunes becomes City’s fourth signing of the summer joining Josko Gvardiol, Jeremy Doku and Mateo Kovacic at the Etihad.
How will Nunes fit in at City?
Analysis by the Athletic’s Wolves reporter Steve Madeley
Nunes earned his reputation as a huge talent arriving from deeper areas, moving through midfield in possession and turning defence into attack via his ball-carrying ability.
For Wolves, he has spent a greater proportion of his match minutes in advanced roles, but he is not at his best with his back to goal or when being asked to thread intricate passes into forwards.
Matheus came off the bench during Julen Lopetegui’s first Premier League game, the 2-1 Boxing Day win away to Everton, but has started the subsequent matches against Manchester United and Aston Villa and produced his best two performances.
Perhaps it is no coincidence that these displays were due to Matheus playing in his favoured role. He started alongside captain Neves as one of two orthodox midfielders in a 4-2-3-1 setup, as his positioning against Villa on Wednesday shows…
In both games, he completed more passes (31 against United and 29 against Villa) at a higher success rate (86 per cent and 91 per cent respectively) than his season’s averages (21 passes and 82 per cent).
And this role in a midfield two has helped him utilise his ball-carrying ability to greater effect.
