Arsenal have been sent a warning over their reported interest in Wolves star Matheus Cunha ahead of the summer.
The Gunners are one of the teams credited with an interest in the Brazilian for the summer transfer window. Cunha has been a standout player for Wolves so far this season, but has just served the last of a four-game ban.
The player was shown a straight red card after lashing out at Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez during their recent FA Cup clash. His three match ban was later upgraded to four matches by the FA after he was charged with acting in an improper manner.
It is the second ban that has been served by Cunha this season. Earlier in the campaign, he was forced to sit out two games after clashing with a member of Ipswich's backroom staff and appearing to take his glasses from his face.
It was claimed after the player's red card against Bournemouth that Arsenal were having 'doubts' over a potential move. They could now have more reason to question if a move for the forward is the right one this summer.
Cunha's ban was seen as an extra challenge to Wolves in their quest of staying up at the end of the season. However, in the four games without the player, Wolves have remained unbeaten, recording three wins and a draw to virtually secure their Premier League status for next season with seven matches left to play.
It’s something noticed by former Premier League striker Alan Shearer. Speaking on Match of the Day on Saturday night, Shearer said: “The question was how were they going to get on with the four games without their best player, Cunha. Well, I actually think they’ve looked like a better team and the manager actually said it there.”
He then added: “Wolves have won three games and drawn one, so that tells you the answer to ‘what were they going to do without their best player?'”
In fact, since Cunha’s suspension, Wolves have picked up more points than any other Premier League team.
For Arsenal, and sporting director Andrea Berta, it could be seen in two ways. Wolves' form without Cunha could raise the doubts over a transfer, with the Gunners weighing up the benefits of signing him with the potential drawbacks of his on the pitch behaviour that has seen him suspended twice this season.
The second could be that Wolves finding a way to both play better and get results without him could make them more willing to cash in in the summer. Cunha signed a new deal with the club in January, but is said to have a release clause of £62.5 million.
If Wolves have found a way to play without him, they could potentially be willing to accept lower than the release clause in the summer window.
It’s a situation that Arsenal will be keeping a close eye on in the next few weeks. Cunha could return to the Wolves team when they take on Tottenham Hotspur at Molineux on Sunday, 13 April.
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