Manchester City reportedly have a deal in place to secure the signing of Nuno Mendes and Pedro Goncalves ‘Pote’ in the January transfer window.
According to the claims in Portuguese TV station CMTV, Manchester City reportedly have an agreement in place to sign highly-rated Sporting CP youngsters Nuno Mendes and Pedro Goncalves in the January window.
Nuno Mendes was strongly linked to Man City in mid-July when there were claims that City saw a €25-30 million bid rejected for the 19-year-old while Sporting were holding out for €50 million. This turned out to be a deal-breaker.
After coming through the ranks at the prestigious Sporting CP academy, Mendes made his professional debut at the age of just 17 yrs 11 months, towards the end of June last season. He became the second-youngest player ever to make a top-flight appearance in Sporting’s long history – only behind Cristiano Ronaldo.
He performed admirably and dominated the left flank. Since then, he has established himself as a regular feature in a highly talented Sporting side. Known for his powerful bursts and dynamism, Mendes is a very solid left-back as he averaged 4.8 tackles & interceptions, one key pass, 1.4 crosses, 1.6 long balls, and 1.5 dribbles per 90; really exceptional numbers for an inexperienced young player.
His impressive run of form got him a deserved international call-up for the Euro 2020 Portugal squad. He couldn’t make the most of the occasion owing to an unfortunate injury.
Manchester City are looking to strengthen their left-back department after the inconsistent performances and recurring injury problems of Benjamin Mendy, which leaves them with only two options either to deploy Joao Cancelo or to use Oleksander Zinchenko. At 19, Mendes is far from a finished product but a prodigious talent, who can explode onto the footballing scene in the near future; that is why he caught Pep Guardiola’s eye.
As for Pedro Goncalves, the 23-year-old attacking midfielder scored 23 goals last season and has been dubbed as “the next Bruno Fernandes” by Portuguese media, considering the similarities in their playing style. But there has been little to no speculation about City seeking his signature. Nonetheless, pundit Fernando Mendes said confidently, “I’ve been told, In January, they’ll be Man City players.”
This is not for the first time Portuguese media are so adamant about their claims. Earlier in July, they reported Nuno Mendes transfer to City all but done, which obviously didn’t materialize. But such was the hype that the club had to come out publicly and deny any interest in the player. The statement hasn’t stopped Portuguese news outlets from professing that their story was real.
Nuno Mendes and Pedro Goncalves are protected by €70 million and €60 million release clauses, respectively, and both players contracts have been tied until June 2025, by Sporting. Though it is hard to believe these claims because no details were given, yet “Football is a crazy world” and now it remains to be seen whether or not Man City will solidify their interest with an official bid.