Manchester City return to Sporting three years on from their emphatic 5-0 win on their last visit to Lisbon

Manchester City return to Sporting three years on from their emphatic 5-0 win on their last visit to Lisbon

 

 

Rodri of Manchester City and Matheus Nunes of Sporting
Four up at half-time. Foot off the gas. 5-0 win after 90 minutes. Job done?

Manchester City were at their ruthless best in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 clash with Ruben Amorim’s Sporting in 2022. They would ease through the tie with a 0-0 draw in the second leg and go on to reach the semi-finals – but Pep Guardiola needed to enforce something on his side ahead of that Etihad fixture.

He knew Sporting weren’t as far away from City as the scoreline suggested, and pointed to the six shots on target his side enjoyed as evidence. They simply scored with almost every shot they had in that first half and the tie was won before 45 minutes were up.

How could Guardiola get his point across then?

“Matheus Nunes is one of the best players in the world today,” he told reporters. “Despite the difficulties and some mistakes, I have to be very satisfied because we took a big step towards the next round. Nunes is one of the best at the moment.”

The comment would propel Nunes into a different kind of conversation he had experienced in the past. A late bloomer in footballing terms, he didn’t go through an elite academy and had been snapped up from lower league side Estoril when he was 21. A quick adaptation at Sporting, and suddenly Nunes was earning praise from the best manager in the world.

It wasn’t long before the inevitable links followed with City. But Nunes was none-the-wiser to the life-changing comment about him that was quickly gaining traction in the UK and beyond.

Pep Guardiola’s Man City will face a stern test when they meet RB Leipzig in the Champions League
Nunes enjoys a good relationship with Pep Guardiola but has had to wait patiently for his opportunity during his 14 months at the Etihad.
“The game we had against City was not very good because we lost 5-0 when I was playing with Sporting,” he told City’s media team last year. “I didn’t even see his (Pep’s) interview, I only found out the next day when we were at breakfast in the club. Of course it felt very good to hear something like that from a coach like he is. ”

Speaking to MEN Sport shortly after signing for City, he explained how he made sure to lock the comments away and refuse to entertain the links “You know how football is,” he said. “You never know. In other interviews, I didn’t even think about it. I completely forgot – maybe [a move to City] will, maybe it won’t. I cannot live my life expecting that it will.

“My life has to carry on because maybe I won’t. It’s life, now that it happened we’re having this conversation but what if it didn’t? We couldn’t have the conversation because it never happened. It felt good at the time but after I forgot because also we lost 5-0 so I was very upset.

“Of course, he (Pep) is amazing, one of the best ever coaches in history. When it comes to your ego it always feels good coming from him. You need to take the focus out of that and keep working. He can say you are, but can say you’re not if you don’t perform.”

Nunes wouldn’t join City that summer, however. He left for Wolves instead and his stock rose further. When City came calling in 2023, Nunes went to the extremes of refusing to train at Molineux to try and force a move through.

This season, he is finally seeing the game time he hoped for and is among the goals. As City battle an injury crisis, Nunes has timed his form to perfection and is expected to start against former club Sporting on Tuesday. He played as a number eight for the majority of his 101 appearances in Lisbon, but has carved out a run of games on the left wing recently.

Sporting CP midfielder Matheus Nunes embraces Kevin de Bruyne.
Guardiola says Nunes did nothing differently this season despite his struggles during his debut campaign, and has previously highlighted his pace and driving ability as unique among the City squad. However he has also distanced himself from those eye-catching comments.

“Maybe I overexaggerated a little bit. He’s not [the best player in the world]. He is a really good player but sometimes, maybe I said this comment after 5-0? But he’s an exceptional player,” said Guardiola.

Nunes eventually got the move he wanted and now Guardiola is getting the player he thought he saw in 2022. It’s taken a few hurdles to get to this point – but Nunes can return to the Jose Avalade Stadium a better player than when he left and that is all he can ask for.