Latest news with #MatheusNunes
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Rico Lewis wants to stay at Manchester City amid Nottingham Forest interest
Rico Lewis has said he has no intention of leaving Manchester City this summer and believes missing out on the Premier League title last season has 'fuelled the fire' in Pep Guardiola's squad. The 20-year-old England defender is the subject of interest from Nottingham Forest but Lewis, who joined City at the age of eight, indicated that he would prefer to stay at the Etihad. 'For me, I've never ever seen myself leaving,' Lewis said after helping City to a 4-0 victory at Wolves on Saturday. 'I've always wanted to play for City. It's my dream. When I'm playing with the kind of players that I'm playing with, it brings out the best of me. So I'm so happy.' Lewis made 44 appearances in all competitions last season but fell behind Matheus Nunes – typically a midfielder – in the pecking order at right-back. Lewis has since spoken to Guardiola about his future. 'Everyone wants that assurance and security, but at the end of day, it's on me,' Lewis added. 'It's on me to perform. Last season I played more than the season before. So it's always the same goal – to become an established player.' Guardiola signalled to Lewis that he remains a key part of his plans by preferring him to Nunes in the win at Molineux, in which Erling Haaland scored twice and Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki both found the net on their league debuts. Discussing the pain of last season and City's ambition to win a fifth title in six years, Lewis said: 'As much as we want to forget about last season, obviously it's in the back of our minds and maybe we could say it's fuelled the fire in us, but we're so focused on this season. We feel so much stronger together as a team. There's always hunger but I think there could be additional hunger now that it's not our crown to defend.' Forest targeted Lewis as part of a double swoop of City academy talents with plans to sign the versatile defender and James McAtee but have only sealed a deal for the latter, for £30m. 'I feel ready for a new challenge and the club had a great season last year, so I want to help build on that and show what I can do,' McAtee said after being unveiled. Forest are on a recruitment drive after their head coach, Nuno Espírito Santo, suggested he was short of options before hosting Brentford on Sunday. They are closing on a deal for the Rennes striker Arnaud Kalimuendo and are interested in the former Aston Villa midfielder Douglas Luiz, who is keen on a return to the Premier League from Juventus. McAtee, who has signed a five-year contract, followed fellow England Under-21 midfielder Omari Hutchinson in joining Forest this week, after the 21-year-old winger switched from Ipswich in a £37m deal.
BBC News
5 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Watch: Linfield v Vikingur plus updates from Santa Clara v Larne
Update: Date: 19:38 BST Title: Team news Content: Santa Clara v Larne (20:00 BST) There are seven changes to the Santa Clara side who were the 3-0 victors in the first leg with Pedro Pacheco, Matheus Nunes, Brenner, Henrique Pereira, Pedro Ferreira, Paulo Victor and Joao Costa coming into the side. Meanwhile Nathan Rooney makes just the one alteration to the starting XI from last week with Matthew Ridley replacing Dylan Sloan, who drops to the bench. Santa Clara: Batista (C), Pacheco, Venancio, Nunes, Brenner, H Pereira, Adriano, Ferreira, Victor, Lopes, Costa. Subs: Neneca, M Pereira, Carter, G Silva, Rocha, W Silva, Serginho. Larne: Ferguson, Donnelly, Ridley, Gallagher, McKendry, Randall, O'Connor, Graham, Nolan, Cosgrove (C), Bent. Subs: D Graham, Magee, Kee, Sloan, Moore, Lusty, Devlin, Wallace, Simpson. Update: Date: 19:36 BST Title: Watch: Offord hat-trick gets Linfield up and running Content: Linfield v Vikingur (19:45 BST) Watch highlights as Linfield beat Dungannon Swifts 3-0 in their opening game of the Irish Premiership on Sunday. This video can not be played Highlights: Offord hat-trick helps Blues beat Swifts Update: Date: 19:34 BST Title: Post Content: Linfield v Vikingur (19:45 BST) In the seven days since the first leg of this tie, both teams have tasted victory in their own domestic competitions. While Linfield started their Premiership title defence in emphatic style with a 3-0 win over Dungannon Swifts, Vikingur also collected three points at the weekend with a 4-2 win over B36 Torshavn. Update: Date: 19:32 BST Title: Linfield not motivated by Euro prize money Content: Linfield v Vikingur (19:45 BST) Linfield manager David Healy Linfield manager David Healy says his side is motivated by sporting "progress" rather than financial rewards in the Uefa Conference League. The Irish Premiership champions go into the second leg of their third qualifying round tie against Vikingur trailing the Faroese side 2-1 on aggregate. The winners of the tie will play Shelbourne, who have already beaten the Blues in a Champions League qualifier this season, for a spot in the league phase of Uefa's third-tier competition. Despite the prize money on offer, and the impact it could have on Linfield's transfer activity, Healy says his players are not thinking about any financial implications. "Financially for the football club it's huge, absolutely," said the former Northern Ireland striker. "But for players and managers like myself, we're looking at progress through rounds. "We want to make solid progress in rounds. That's our main objective." Read more here Update: Date: 19:30 BST Title: Post Content: Linfield v Vikingur (19:45 BST) The Vikingur fans have gathered in Belfast ahead of tonight's game in Windsor Park. Update: Date: 19:28 BST Title: Team news Content: Linfield v Vikingur (19:45 BST) Skipper Jamie Mulgrew has failed to recover from the injury that forced him off at half-time in last week's first leg. His replacement seven days ago - Kyle McClean - starts this evening. Manager David Healy also makes an attack-minded switch from last week with Charlie Allen starting in favour of Ethan McGee, who is listed among the substitutes. Vikingur also make two changes from last week, one of them in goal where Faroese international Bardur Reynatreo replaces Hans Jakup Armgrimasson, whose namesake Ingi Armagrimasson replaces Ragnar Skala. The visitors are again captained by 43-year-old Atli Gregersen, who combines his playing role with his position as assistant manager of the Faroe Islands national team. Linfield: Johns, Orr, Hall, Roscoe, Millar, Shields, Archer, McClean, Allen, Offord, Fitzpatrick. Subs: Walsh (GK), Rooney (GK), Whiteside, McKee, Brown, McGee, McKay, Annett, Morrison. Vikingur: Reynatreo, Olsen, Gregersen, Svensson, I Arngrimasson, Johanrdsson, Ellingsgaard, ATlason, Kallsberg, Vatnhamar, Johansen. Subs: H-J Armgrimasson, Skala, Nielsen, Brandsson, Djurhuus, Radosavlevic, Jarnskor, Bjarkhamar, Olavsson, Hansen, Joensen. Update: Date: 19:25 BST Title: Linfield sign Scottish striker Yates Content: Linfield v Vikingur (19:45 BST) Linfield announced earlier today that they have added Scottish striker Ryan Yates to their squad on a one-year deal. The 23-year-old, who spent time in the academies of Rangers and Hibernian, arrives from Scottish League One side Stenhousemuir. He also previously had a spell at Stranraer and becomes Linfield's second summer signing after Sean Brown. "Matt is a talented forward with proven experience in senior football at such a young age, Blues boss David Healy told the club's website. "He's a natural goalscorer with the intelligence to link play and has shown the hunger to improve further. We believe he'll be a strong addition to our attacking options this season." He is yet to receive international clearance so is not in the squad tonight but we can now bring you team news from Windsor Park. Update: Date: 19:22 BST Title: Larne suffer defeat against clinical Santa Clara Content: Larne 0-3 Santa Clara, Thursday 7 August Larne have a mountain to climb in the second leg of their Uefa Conference League third round qualifying tie after a 3-0 defeat by Santa Clara in the first leg at the Ballymena Showgrounds. The Portuguese side blew Larne away with three goals in a ruthless first-half display courtesy of Wendel Silva and two from Gabriel Silva. Nathan Rooney's side improved in the second half, but the damage was done in the first half, and they were indebted to goalkeeper Rohan Ferguson for keeping the score down. Read more here Santa Clara celebrate scoring their first goal Update: Date: 19:20 BST Title: Linfield beaten by Vikingur in Conference League first leg Content: Vikingur 2-1 Linfield, Thursday 7 August Linfield have to come from behind if they are to reach the play-off round of the Uefa Conference League after they suffered a 2-1 defeat to Vikingur in the first leg. David Healy's side suffered a dreadful start, conceding an early Ben Hall own goal in Torshavn, but quickly recovered to level through Matthew Fitzpatrick. Ingi Jonhardsson's second half strike earned victory for the Faroese champions, but Healy will remain confident of overturning the deficit. Read more here Linfield's Chris Shields Update: Date: 19:18 BST Title: Post Content: Linfield v Vikingur (19:45 BST) A reminder of what happened in the first legs for both Linfield and Larne... Update: Date: 19:14 BST Title: Linfield and Larne in European action Content: Linfield v Vikingur (19:45 BST) Hello and welcome to our live coverage of tonight's two Uefa Conference League third qualifying round second legs involving two Irish Premiership sides. At 19:45 BST, Linfield welcome Vikingur to Windsor Park, hoping to overturn a 2-1 deficit from the first leg in the Faroe Islands as they look to progress to the play-off round. That game will be live on BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website. Then at 20:00 BST, Larne travel to Portugal to take on Santa Clara. Trailing 3-0 from the first leg, Nathan Rooney's side need a miracle to progress but will look for a positive performance against a classy side. We will have live text commentary and reports of both games. Thanks for joining us - enjoy!
New York Times
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Pep Guardiola's Manchester City: The first steps of a rejuvenation
This version of Pep Guardiola has no room for worry. His face growing ever more bronzed from the Boca Raton sun, the Manchester City manager is living by a mantra of freedom and relaxation. Wish to go to Miami after training? Crack on. Barbecue out back with the wives and kids? Fill your boots. Golf, beach, swimming; however City's players want to find joy, Guardiola's laissez-faire approach to their time in the U.S. is keen to accommodate. Advertisement It has been noticeable just how refreshed Guardiola seems, despite having virtually no break between the end of the most turbulent season of his managerial career and this Club World Cup starting. Eulogising over South American fan culture, delivering an impromptu birthday message to Michel Platini, fawning over Matheus Nunes' conversion to right-back so passionately he may as well have been talking about Cafu. Not even concerns that this Club World Cup could jeopardise their Premier League season? 'I try not to think about it, otherwise I would be so anxious,' he said. 'People do their work best when they enjoy.' Guardiola's demeanour is a far cry from winter, at the peak of his team's four-month crisis, when he seemed to wear each and every error across his brow. He looked like a defeated man. Stressed, dejected and, for perhaps the first time in his career, unsure whether he had the answers. It seemed like his decision to sign a new two-year contract in November may have been a misjudgment, that his ability to keep refreshing and motivating had finally succumbed to human vulnerability. Yet, here he rocked up in the U.S., a man completely rejuvenated. Then, on Thursday his team transformed, too, hammering Juventus 5-2 with a performance so confident and slick, it was as if that crisis never happened. For 17 years as a manager, Guardiola has continually posed new questions of the sport but after unparalleled dominance in the Premier League and the toughest period of his career, finding the energy and inspiration to conjure up a new vision of what his City team, perhaps in his final act as manager, must surely have been more testing. 'When you win something, it is over and you start again. When you lose, it is the same,' he said. 'We made a good level (at the end) and qualified for the Champions League. The club brings in three new players, everything is new, so let's go. Advertisement 'I try to understand the players a bit better, improve yourself. Don't think too much about tomorrow and the future, and we will see. 'The main target is to not tell the players but (for them) to visualise the way we play in training sessions. They feel this is what we want and the path where we can be competitive.' Two years ago, Guardiola claimed that the reinvention of this City team was not always part of a grandmaster desire to push the boundaries. 'It's because otherwise, I get bored,' he said. 'Always doing the same thing for eight years would be very boring. That's the first thing. And secondly, when you do something and it goes well, they watch you and create an antidote. If you go too inside, they close in. If we open up the field too much, they'll open it up more. 'Anything we do and they respond to us. We have to respond again. The third reason is the players we have; what specific qualities they have and when they adapt best to the way you want to play.' Guardiola recognises that the Premier League is becoming increasingly athletic, with more and more teams adopting man-to-man pressing. He is adapting his team accordingly and that was evidenced against Juventus on Thursday. The main themes were forward runs, direct passes into the striker and an in-possession formation that shapeshifts so often, it feels pointless to lay out a starting XI in any specific order. Guardiola has always traditionally asked for his two wingers to provide the width for the team but that started to change at times last season, with the full-backs hugging the touchline. It looks like there is going to be constant variation of that on both sides, with Rayan Ait-Nouri at left-back. The Algerian inverted into midfield in the third minute of the game, with Jeremy Doku holding width on the left and right-back Matheus Nunes high and wide on the opposite flank, with Savinho tucked inside. A few minutes later, City were in a variation of a 2-3-5 build-up, with Ait-Nouri the furthest forward player and Doku and Savinho playing as two No 10s behind Omar Marmoush, as was their starting position for most of the first half. Within these changes of shape, one overarching principle that was back with a vengeance was the presence of runners in behind the Juventus defence. Last season, there was not enough of it — perhaps partly due to City's defensive struggles in transition making them wary of overcommitting too many men, but it made them easier to contain. There were constant attempts to stretch the Juventus back line, whether it was isolating Marmoush to run into the channel when Ederson has the ball, or Savinho going beyond Marmoush… …or Tijjani Rejnders and Bernardo Silva breaking from midfield. Rejnders excelled against Juventus and this was a key part of his game, with City's second goal coming from a late third-man run that saw Matheus Nunes's cross lead to a Pierre Kalulu goal. The Dutch international has added running power to a midfield that was lacking legs but often, City will come up against a low block, which is a challenge he is confident these runs and dribbles can overcome. 'The spaces are very small, so you have to be very secure in those situations and patient,' said Reijnders. Advertisement 'With the qualities we have with the wingers and the midfielders, we can always outplay a player. Those are things we have to use if we are playing teams who drop like this.' City consistently played directly into Marmoush's feet when under pressure with the running of Reijnders right across the midfield proving key to breaking the man-to-man press as he was able to escape his marker and offer an option to create a transition opportunity. Rodri, who made his first start in nine months, says he believes City are 'showing that this team has another face' after making changes to improve on what went wrong last season. 'We are trying to find out the best way this team works, trying to fix the new signings and find what is the best way of playing,' said the Spanish midfielder. 'In two weeks, you cannot guess anything. We are testing and I think this tournament is an incredible opportunity to compete, but also show what we are going to show next season.' (Patricia de Melo Moreira/AFP via Getty Images)
BreakingNews.ie
29-06-2025
- Sport
- BreakingNews.ie
Man City out to continue fresh start at Club World Cup by reaching last eight
Manchester City will bid to join Chelsea in the quarter-finals of the Club World Cup as they come up against Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal on Monday night. City were the only team in the tournament to win all three of their group games and they will hope to carry that momentum into their last-16 outing in Orlando. Advertisement Unlike Chelsea, who are trying to add a final flourish to a 2024-25 season in which they won the Conference League, City have been trying to make a fresh start in the United States. Pep Guardiola has approached the Club World Cup as the start of a new season (Phelan Ebenhack/AP) Manager Pep Guardiola has viewed the competition as the start of a new campaign in order to make a clean break from what was a frustrating past year. That approach so far seems to have been vindicated with the side, bolstered by some new signings, playing with a fresh vigour. Wydad Casablanca and Al Ain were swept aside by an aggregate of 8-0 before City thrashed Juventus 5-2 in a statement performance last Thursday. Advertisement 'We're still early in the season, but I think the energy is different,' said Matheus Nunes, who shone at right-back against the Italians. 'I think last year we were a little down in terms of spirit, but we know what it means to play for Manchester City and this season that's definitely going to change. 'What I like most about this tournament is that we entered all the games to win and it has to be that way until the final.' After four successive Premier League titles – a period that included the glorious treble of 2022-23 – City fell below their own high standards last season. Advertisement They failed to muster a strong defence of their domestic crown and were eliminated from the Champions League before the last 16. They even failed to land the FA Cup as a consolation prize as they lost to Crystal Palace in the final. The underwhelming performances prompted the start of a squad overhaul in January with the arrivals of Nico Gonzalez, Omar Marmoush, Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis. That has continued this summer with the signings of Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Cherki, Rayan Ait-Nouri and Marcus Bettinelli. Nunes admits he does not know why last season was so disappointing but is confident the corner has been turned. 'I think a lot of things happened last year that didn't go well,' the Portuguese said. 'I don't know the reasons. Advertisement 'But I think there is a very fundamental principle for all games – go on to the field to win the three points. I think this year is going to be different.'
Al Etihad
29-06-2025
- Sport
- Al Etihad
Manchester City out to continue fresh start at Club World Cup by reaching last eight
29 June 2025 20:38 Orlando (PA Media/dpa)Manchester City will bid to join Chelsea in the quarter-finals of the Club World Cup as they come up against Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal on Monday were the only team in the tournament to win all three of their group games and they will hope to carry that momentum into their last-16 outing in Casablanca and Al Ain were swept aside by an aggregate of 8-0 before City thrashed Juventus 5-2 in a statement performance last Thursday."We're still early in the season, but I think the energy is different," said Matheus Nunes, who shone at right-back against the Italians. "What I like most about this tournament is that we entered all the games to win and it has to be that way until the final."
