Manchester City will have to pay in excess of £60m to sign Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Matheus Nunes, according to a report.
The 24-year-old has emerged as a leading target for the Citizens after they decided to walk away from negotiations with West Ham United to sign Lucas Paqueta amid a FIFA and Football Association betting investigation into the midfielder.
Following the departure of Ilkay Gundogan to Barcelona and the injury suffered by Kevin De Bruyne, Pep Guardiola is looking to recruit a new midfielder before the summer transfer window shuts on September 1.
A recent report claims that Man City have stepped up their interest in Nunes and have submitted an initial bid in excess of €50m (£42.7m).
Nunes is understood to have already given the green light to move to the Etihad Stadium as he is keen to represent the treble winners in the Champions League.
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However, The Telegraph claims that Wolves received an opening bid of £47m from Man City on Wednesday evening, which has been swiftly rejected.
The Citizens are expected to return with an improved offer, but a separate report from talkSPORT states that Wolves will demand a fee in excess of £60m for the Portugal international, who only moved to Molineux last summer for a then club-record £38m from Sporting Lisbon.
Wolves have been forced to sell a number of key players this summer including Ruben Neves, Nathan Collins, Conor Coady and Raul Jimenez to help balance their books amid Financial Fair Play concerns.
However, Gary O'Neil's side are understood to have no interest in selling Nunes, who has also attracted interest from Liverpool this summer.
Nunes, who still has four years left on his contract at Molineux, was a first-team regular for Wolves in his debut campaign at the club, starting 31 of his 35 Premier League appearances in 2022-23.
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However, Nunes has only shown glimpses of his talent as a box-to-box midfielder during his brief time in England, chipping in with just one goal and one assist.
Nunes has started both of Wolves' opening two games of the new Premier League season under new boss O'Neil, but he was sent off in the 4-1 home defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion last weekend.
Guardiola is a known admirer of Nunes, who received plenty of praise from the Catalan boss after representing his former club Sporting against Man City in a Champions League knockout tie in 2021-22.
"Matheus Nunes is one of the best players in the world today," Guardiola told reporters in February last year. "Despite the difficulties and some mistakes, I have to be very satisfied because we took a big step towards the next round. Nunes is one of the best at the moment."
Nunes is not the only midfielder believed to be on Man City's radar, as they are reportedly weighing up a move for Crystal Palace star Eberechi Eze, who is valued in excess of £70m.
Oliver Thomas
