Mendes can give Man Utd edge over Liverpool and Arsenal in Nunez race

Robin Bairner

• 27 Apr 2022 10:34 CDT
• 3 min read

Manchester United’s hopes of completing a transfer for Darwin Nunez from Benfica may have been given a boost by the relationship of super-agent Jorge Mendes with the player.

Nunez has become one of the hottest transfer properties in Europe this season, having enjoyed an excellent campaign in Portugal’s top flight. As such, a glut of clubs have been following his progress, with Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City all associated with a player who previously caught the eye of Barcelona.

With Bruno Fernandes and Luis Diaz just two of the players to have recently lit up the Premier League after moving directly from Portugal, Nunez has made football transfer news headlines after scoring 25 goals in 26 top-flight matches this season and is forecast to follow in his predecessors’ footprints.

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Competition, though, is set to be intense for the 22-year-old, who started his career with Penarol before moving to Almeria and then finally to Benfica in 2020 for €24 million. He will, of course, move for many times more than that this summer, with reports suggesting a price upwards of €100m.

Man Utd may just have stolen an advantage in this transfer race, though, with the news that Nunez’s agent Eugenio Lopez has reached an agreement with Mendes to help find the No.9 a club in the Premier League.

Why Mendes is an asset to Man Utd

Mendes’ presence in this deal is of benefit to Manchester United because he has worked closely with the club previously. Indeed, he was instrumental in the deal that saw Cristiano Ronaldo transfer back to Old Trafford from Juventus last summer.

The super-agent, though, also has a strong presence at Manchester City, where he can count Ruben Dias, Bernardo Silva, Joao Cancelo and Ederson among his clients. However, with Erling Haaland also poised to move to the Etihad Stadium, it seems unlikely that Mendes will sell Nunez to a club where he would likely be a long-term second choice.

Under the wing of Ronaldo at Manchester United, meanwhile, Nunez would have the opportunity to learn from one of the best for a season as he acclimatises to life in the Premier League before ultimately taking the reins from the Portuguese in the medium term.

Mendes may just be the ace card that Man Utd need to complete the Nunez transfer.