Matheus Cunha Wolves
Wolves
Matheus Cunha has been linked with multiple Premier League clubs and according to a report in Football Insider, Nottingham Forest are the latest admirer.
The report is claiming that Forest, if they can qualify for the Champions League, are ready to break their club transfer records to try and sign Matheus Cunha from Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The versatile attacker is primarily a centre-forward but this season, he’s shone as an attacking midfielder. Despite Wolves’ poor form in the Premier League, the 25-year-old has made 13 goal contributions while playing as the No. 10.
He signed an extension just last month and the new deal has a €75 million release clause. This clause, if triggered, will make the Brazilian the club-record sale, as and when he leaves Wolves.
Forest’s entry into this transfer race will be a massive worry for Arsenal who have been keeping tabs on the Brazilian international and it’s time that Mikel Arteta takes a call on what he wants his hierarchy to do.
Will Matheus Cunha be a sensible investment for the Gunners?
The 23/24 season was his first truly great campaign as a senior player and he’s backed it up with 15 goals and 4 assists in 29 appearances this season.
His versatility is his biggest asset because not only can Matheus Cunha play as a centre-forward and score goals but at the same time he can link up superbly with his midfielders.
Arsenal are already on the lookout for a new striker so we don’t think Arteta will consider him in that role. And at the same time, since they have Martin Odegaard as their undisputed No. 10, we doubt if the Gunners will be eager to spend so much money on a potential backup.
Firstly, it does not make sense to pay €75 million for a player who’s not going to a regular starter next season and on top of that, it will be extremely hard for Arteta to convince Matheus Cunha to join a team that already has a world-class talent like Odegaard.
If Nottingham Forest can qualify for the Champions League they will have a great chance of landing the Wolves attacker but we are sure that Arsenal need to stay away from this fight. Instead, Arteta needs to urge his management to use most of the club’s transfer budget to sign a proper goal-machine.