Manchester City midfielder Matheus Nunes has admitted that securing Champions League qualification would now be the club’s equivalent of winning the Premier League title, following a below-par domestic campaign by their own lofty standards.
The Portuguese international scored a dramatic late winner in City’s 2-1 victory over Aston Villa on Tuesday, a result that propelled Pep Guardiola’s side to third place in the table—four points clear of seventh-placed Villa.
With Liverpool closing in on the title and Arsenal looking secure in second, five teams, including Manchester City, are jostling for the remaining three spots in Europe’s premier club competition. Newcastle, Nottingham Forest, Chelsea, and Aston Villa are all still in the mix.
“This is our Premier League trophy now, to qualify for the Champions League,” said Nunes, who was netting his first league goal for City in his second season at the club.
“I think it’s massively important for us—in terms of everything: the club, the players, the mentality.”
City began the season as favourites to win a historic fifth consecutive league title but faltered with a dip in form from late October. Despite the setback, they remain in contention for silverware and will face Nottingham Forest in Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final at Wembley.
Nunes, 26, was candid in assessing the team’s struggles. He acknowledged that even with a top-four finish and potential FA Cup success, the season would still fall short of expectations.
“The club’s standards are much higher than this,” he said. “We know that this is not the standard we want this club to be at. But this is our reality now and we have to accept it. And we just have to go for it like it’s the Champions League, the Premier League trophy.”
