First Impressions: The truth about Matheus Cunha

Fans were encouraged by our new signing’s dynamic performance in the Premier League opener against Arsenal and particularly his ability to drive the ball forward at pace. Clearly, the no.10 is one of the most exciting talents to watch this season. 

Cunha has also impressed his new team-mates, as we discovered when speaking to the squad for the first episode in our ‘First Impressions’ series. Watch the video below and then dive deeper by reading the players’ inside stories…

Casemiro: “I already knew Matheus for a long time because we played together in the national team. I also played against him when he was at Atletico Madrid and  Wolves. So I know him very well, I know the quality that he has. He has already demonstrated in the Premier League that he’s a great player. And now, he plays in one of the biggest teams in England. I’m sure that he’ll do well because he’s a great player. He’s a young player with a lot of ambition. And well, I’m sure he’s going to be really important for us, not just for scoring goals. But also the quality he has in many ways will carry us in the attacking third.

“He is an incredible person. For me, what I value and what I like to speak about with these people is the personal side. Because ultimately, everyone in the world knows what Cunha is: a fantastic player. But he’s also a great person. It’s a pleasure to share the dressing room with him. I knew him from the national team, and he has a lot of happiness, he transmits a lot of joy. It’s important not only on the pitch, but also off it, within the dressing room. Always with a big smile. Always wanting to dance, to joke with the people, but also he knows when to be serious, but it’s important to have people with this attitude in the dressing room.”

Manuel Ugarte: “Well, Matheus is from Brazil. Uruguay and Brazil are very close so we have a good relationship. He’s very extroverted, he’s very funny. And this is important to bring energy to the group. And we are all really happy with him. Always with a smile, always joking, and in the group this is important to have good energy and succeed.”

Harry Maguire: “He's a unit for his age and I'm sure he's going to cause a lot of defenders problems. I think he's still young, we've got to remember that as a club and a fanbase, but he has got all of the attributes to contribute to the team and contribute to this club for many years to come. We will give him our full backing and hopefully he scores many goals for us.”

Tom Heaton: “Brilliant footballer, brilliant guy. Obviously I've seen him in the Premier League over the last few years and I've seen his ability, and what he can do. But when you see it up close, he's an incredibly gifted football. I thought he was a top player but he has gone beyond my expectations, which is always a nice thing when you sign a new player. The other part of that is the personality and what he has brought to the building. A brilliant guy, a real energy and personality amongst the dressing room. I think he has been outstanding so far. A couple of days ago I made a save and I usually give the centre-forwards a bit of grief when you make a save, but he was sarcastically giving me a bit of grief about making a save. It was just a good moment between goalies and strikers. You can see that he has got a little bit about him.”

Diogo Dalot: “He is very funny and that shows his personality. He can be very funny at one time but when he goes onto the pitch you can see that he has that fire inside. He is very mature playing football. Sometimes people can misunderstand what he is outside and inside, but I would say that makes him every more complete as a person and as a player. He can have those moments where he can be bubbly and funny, and at the same time he can be very serious and focused on what he has to do. He has very good qualities that he can bring to the team.”

Matthijs de Ligt: “I think he made a good impression, he has fit in really well to the group, he is nice to talk to, he is really open, so outside the pitch he is a really good guy, really energetic, a lot of fun and that's the most important thing I think. On the pitch he's doing really well. He understands how the manager wants to play. Obviously he played the system already with Wolves and he has some experience with it. I think he can help us more and more.”

Ayden Heaven: “We knew he was a great player because we've played against him. When we trained with him, he showed his qualities with us and he's just given us all confidence to play. He is going to help the team and help us to improve. He's quite lively in the changing room so he's fitted in well. You always need that in in the changing room and he plays a big role.”

Patrick Dorgu: “Matheus is a really good guy. He integrated with the team really fast. On the pitch we are already seeing bits of his quality so hopefully we will see more in the season. He's very smiley, very funny, very lively. He's Brazilian and they have energy. He's good with everyone.”

Tyler Fredricson: “You can see when you watch him on the training pitch that he is really aggressive and especially when he gets the ball, he is direct, fast and powerful. He is a really good player and I am excited to see what he can do this season.”

Kobbie Mainoo: “Top guy, really nice guy. Obviously everyone knows how good of a player he is, especially last season with the amount of goals he scored and even against us. In training and in games, so far he has looked really good and I have enjoyed playing with him. He loves football and he is really excited when we are playing. He's a top guy, a really nice guy.”