Pep Guardiola was full of praise for one of his fringe players after Manchester City beat Watford 2-1 in the Carabao Cup.
Manchester City have reached the fourth round of the competition, after Jeremy Doku and Matheus Nunes scored goals in the first-half for the hosts.
It was an uncomfortable end to the game when Watford found the net through Tom Ince.
But City managed to get over the line, on a night when 16-year-old Kaden Braithwaite made his debut, and attention will now turn back to the Premier League, with Newcastle United next up this weekend.
It was a good night for Nunes, who has again struggled for minutes this season.
He had a solid outing in midfield, and Pep Guardiola sang the Portugal international’s praises after the game.
Pep Guardiola hails ‘unique’ Matheus Nunes and his ‘special qualities’ after Watford win
Tonight’s game was a big opportunity for Nunes.
He has not played anywhere near as much as he would have liked so far this season, and that was perhaps clear with his muted celebration when he scored.
There was a bit of speculation about Nunes’ future in the transfer window.
But he remained, and it’s now on him to give Pep a reason to select him more.
On the evidence of his performance against Watford, he should get more minutes. Pep was certainly pleased with him after the game.
He said (as quoted by mancity.com): “He has special qualities few players have. Unique. Space in transitions is unbelievable.
“Pleased for him and the goal. Still he has things to read and it’s not easy to adapt. Really pleased for him, he’s a lovely guy and lovely guys always deserves good things.’
A good night for Nunes
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It was good to see Nunes stepping up in a City shirt and taking some responsibility.
It hasn’t really happened for him since he completed his £53 million transfer from Wolves. But he can still make it work.
He’s low down in the pecking order at the moment. But the praise from Pep will have been nice to hear and hopefully, he can take some confidence from that.
There is no doubt there is a player there.
It’s just about him showing a bit more consistency. Certainly, that ball-carrying ability is very impressive and could be a real weapon for City.
