Manchester City make an improved £52M offer for Matheus Nunes after Wolves previously rejected an initial bid because it didn’t meet their valuation of the Portugal international

Manchester City have submitted an improved £52 million bid for Wolves midfielder Matheus Nunes as they target a late spate of transfer activity.

The reigning Premier League champions finally found their way past Sheffield United at Bramall Lane on Sunday – even without Pep Guardiola reinforcing the touchline – but appear to be lacking midfield reinforcements.

City had a £47 million bid for the Portugal international rejected by Wolves last week, but have bounced back with a new offer that they hope will be accepted.

Nunes was not part of the Wolves squad that secured a hard-fought victory over Everton last weekend as he was serving a suspension after being sent off in an earlier defeat to Brighton.

However, the 25-year-old could never pull off Wolves’ striking yellow shirt again as City scrambles to convince the Midlands club to sell one of their star players.

Nunes (right) is being chased by City as the club look to bolster their chances in midfield

Wolves have interest in City Academy duo James McAtee and Tommy Doyle, but neither will be included as an option in a deal for Nunes, with those talks being kept separate.

Nunes still has a four-year contract with the option to extend a further year on his existing contract with Wolves, having joined from Sporting Lisbon for a then-club record £38 million last year.

The contract situation puts Wolves in a strong negotiating position and first-team manager Gary O’Neil stressed that the club will not sell if their valuation is not met.

“He’s an important player for us, who has four or five years left on his contract, but we turned down an offer because we felt it didn’t live up to our appreciation of what Matheus is worth to us,” O’Neil said in a statement. the run-up to the match. press conference recently.

City boss Pep Guardiola (photo) is a great admirer of the Portuguese international

Wolves manager Gary O’Neil previously stated that the club will not sell unless their valuation is met

“I don’t know the details of the offer and where it stands, but all I know is that our valuation for Matheus has not been met. I’m head coach. I coach the team and the players who are available, and Matheus is not available this weekend.’

Kevin De Bruyne’s serious injury, coupled with the departure of Ilkay Gundogan to Barcelona this summer, has left the Treble winners in need of a new midfielder.

City boss Guardiola is a huge admirer of Nunes and showered him with praise against Sporting in the Champions League a year ago before making the switch to Molineux.

City, however, are careful not to let themselves go too far into paying too high a price for the star and will back out of the deal if they feel there is a risk of that happening.