Everton are still in talks to sign Sporting Lisbon’s Matheus Nunes but the arrival of Rafa Benitez means the £20 million midfielder could miss out on a move to the Premier League, as reported by Record.
No Nuno means no Jorge Mendes at Goodison Park.
And that, in turn, means a player who has been negotiating a potential switch to Everton for the best part of a month finds himself locked in limbo with just weeks until the new season kicks off.
In mid-June, it seemed only a matter of time before Matheus Nunes was posing for photos, arm in arm with Farhad Moshiri, a royal blue scarf hanging round his neck.
Everton were expected to sign the Brazilian playmaker on an initial loan deal, with a £20 million obligation-to-buy clause included in a contract that would have seen Nunes earn a substantial pay rise.
Why has Sporting star Nunes not joined Everton yet?
At the time, Nuno Espirito Santo was on the verge of becoming Everton’s new manager.
But, according to The Athletic, the Toffees got cold feet, fearing that hiring the former Wolverhampton Wanderers boss would also mean ceding control of recruitment to Portuguese super-agent Jorge Mendes.
Mendes, as you might have guessed, also represents 22-year-old Nunes.
And it’s no coincidence that since Everton broke off talks with Nuno, reports linking his near-namesake with a move to the blue half of Stanley Park have grown cold.
Now, Record shed some light on the situation at the weekend pointing out that, while negotiations remain ongoing, Everton appear to have taken their foot off the gas.
Benitez is understood to have other plans in place, and those plans may not involve a highly rated attacking midfielder who also missed out on a move to Newcastle United earlier this year.
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