Following the departure of Harrison Delbridge, Melbourne City have moved to sign a replacement in the form of 29-year-old Portuguese defender Nuno Reis on a 3-year deal.
Reis most recently played 25 games for Bulgarian side Levski Sofia in the 2019/20 campaign, including four Europa League qualifiers.
The defender came through the youth ranks of Portuguese giants Sporting Lisbon, before stints throughout Europe with the likes of Club Brugge, Panathinaikos and Vitória Setúbal in the Portuguese top-flight.
Playing mostly as a central defender, Reis has also been utilised as a defensive midfielder frequently throughout his career, appearing there 30 times, which is perhaps explanatory of his surprising passing capabilities. Fitting the ball-playing defender mould, Reis is adept at hitting long balls for forwards looking to break behind the defensive line, but has also demonstrated an ability to fizz in low, fast ground balls to the feet of deep-lying strikers, bypassing the midfield.
At 6’0”, Reis isn’t a prolific aerial threat and has only scored four career goals, only one of which was a header.
Reis' utilisation within the squad will be an intriguing point of discussion for fans, with a possible return to midfield duties potentially on the cards for Rostyn Griffiths, who has been deputising at centre-back alongside Curtis Good until getting injured in City's win over Western United.
Comentarios