Leo Bonatini could have moved to Manchester City six years ago – but only arrived in England this summer with Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The teams at the top of both the Premier League and the Championship go head-to-head in the EFL Cup on Tuesday night as Pep Guardiola’s fearsome Manchester City welcome Nuno Espirito Santo’s promotion favourites Wolves to the Etihad.
There is one player in Wolves’ squad, however, who will surely be fired up and desperate to make a positive impression at the home of the Manchester giants. After all, striker Leo Bonatini was close to joining City all the way back in 2011.
“I think it will be a little difficult. Leo is one of our promising talents, but Roque is already an established player. But if the deal is to our liking, we will pursue it,” Fonseca admitted.
Opportunity missed
Santa Cruz joined Real Betis on loan instead however before joining Malaga the following summer. Bonatini, meanwhile, was forced to wait another six years before finally getting his chance in England, moving to Wolves on loan from Saudi club Al-Hilal in the summer.
And the wait has been worth it so far. The 23-year-old has seven goals in 11 Championship starts, including two in Saturday’s impressive 3-2 victory over Preston North End.
With Wolves on track for promotion to the Premier League, however, Bonatini has a chance to prove that he does indeed belong at the highest level of English football as he prepares to visit the side that could have signed him all those years ago.
“We don’t need to be scared of them,” Bonatini told the Express and Star.
He’s right. This is an opportunity for the Brazilian to show that the Premier League is where he belongs.
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