On Friday, A Bola explained Manchester City are preparing an offer for Sporting’s Nuno Mendes.
Manchester United have joined the Citizens in chasing the 18-year-old, and this has been stated by another report from the same outlet.
‘Manchester derby for Nuno Mendes,’ reads the headline in today’s edition of A Bola. Within the report, it’s explained the two Manchester sides are expected be involved in a ‘duel’ to take the left-back.
It’s claimed the left-back’s departure ‘gains more and more strength and seems to be even irreversible’. The Portugal international’s future beyond this season passes through Manchester, where the Old Trafford club and City are named as suitors.
Mendes and Bruno Fernandes share the same agent, and their representative, Miguel Pinho, is ‘expected today in Manchester.’
Amorim and his side are fully aware it will be difficult to retain Mendes, who has a €70m release clause, and is attracting interest from clubs across Europe.
Sporting want the fullback to be their most expensive sale, surpassing the €55m fee Manchester United paid for signing Fernandes in January 2020.
Pinho has ‘privileged relations’ with United and that could favour them over City in a potential summer transfer.
Mendes operates as a left-back, a position where Luke Shaw and Alex Telles are currently the two recognised options.
With the left side of the defence covered, at least from next season’s perspective, it’s not clear why spending over €55m on Mendes would make sense for United.
