"We can say..." - Liverpool dealt transfer blow as manager issues defiant warning over £44m star

Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Julen Lopetegui opened up about Liverpool’s reported move for Matheus Nunes.

Reports emerged this morning that Liverpool are exploring a deal to sign the Wolves midfielder, who has only been at Molineux since the summer.

Liverpool had been linked with the Portuguese star for months before Wolves spent some £38million to secure his services in August.

However a Telegraph report claims the Reds made a commitment to bid for Nunes last summer, and that the deal remains alive in the winter window.

Should the deal go through, for a fee likely to be around €50 million (£44 million), the 24-year-old would move to Anfield next summer.

Lopetegui responds to Nunes’ Liverpool links

New Wolves boss Lopetegui bluntly responded to speculation linking Nunes to a Liverpool move.

When quizzed about the rumours emerging, Lopetegui responded: “We can say that Matheus is our player.

“He’s a Wolves player and he’s so happy here.”

While Nunes is Wolves’ record signing, he has struggled to make a major impact during his short spell in the Black Country.

The player suffered from a series of injuries under previous manager Bruno Lage.

Indeed, before Wolves’ Saturday defeat to Manchester United, he had competed 90 minutes just once, in a 3-0 home defeat to Manchester City on September 17.

Nunes has shown flashes of his Sporting form since arriving to the Premier League while he made two appearances for Portugal at the World Cup in Qatar.