Will Matheus Nunes make his Man City debut this weekend? £53million star hoping to fill void left by Kevin De Bruyne against West Ham

Matheus Nunes will hope to hit the ground running when Manchester City return to action away at West Ham this weekend.

The Portugal star completed a controversial deadline day transfer to the Premier League champions from Wolves for £53million.

Nunes will be itching to make his mark in De Bruyne’s absenceGetty

City were desperate to bring in a new playmaking midfielder after talisman Kevin De Bruyne was ruled out for up to four months.

The club initially failed to agree a deal to poach Lucas Paqueta from West Ham before turning their attention to Nunes.

City saw an initial bid for the 25-year-old rejected before Nunes refused to train with his Wolves teammates in order to force through a switch to the Etihad.

His eventual arrival came in time for the midfielder to be included in City’s squad for the 5-1 win over Fulham but he was an unused substitute.

Will Nunes make his Man City debut this weekend?

The Portuguese international is likely to make his bow for City at the London Stadium against West Ham this Saturday.

Nunes’ deadline day transfer meant he had precious little time to train with his new teammates after a brief period on strike.

But the former Sporting Lisbon star was left out of Roberto Martinez’s latest Portugal squad for their Euro 2024 qualifiers.

This has meant Nunes has been able to spend the international break getting used to his new surroundings at the Etihad Campus.

His bedding in process at City also follows fellow new signing Jeremy Doku.

Nunes made two appearances for Wolves this seasonGetty

The Belgian winger was also relegated to an unused substitute role for the first City match he was available for following his move from Rennes.

Doku failed to leave the bench during the club’s 2-1 victory over Sheffield United last month but was then thrust into the starting XI a week later.

Meanwhile, Nunes expressed his delight at sealing his dream move to City in his first interview since making the trip up north.

“I’m so happy to be joining Manchester City, the Champions of Europe and a club I’ve admired for a long time,” he said.

“The opportunity to work under Pep Guardiola, one of the greatest managers ever, and alongside some of the best players in the world was something I couldn’t turn down.

“I’ve learned so much during my season at Wolves and I’m excited to continue improving in the Premier League, a division which brings the best out of me.

“I’m really excited to get going, meet the fans and hopefully be a part of plenty more success at City.”