Valencia boss Nuno Espirito Santo has told defender Joao Pereira that he has played his last game for the club.
The 30-year-old Portuguese international has not featured in La Liga for Los Che this term, yet was widely expected to be handed a starting role in Thursday’s Copa del Rey game at Rayo Vallecano.
However, Nuno told a Press conference he will not be featuring in Vallecas and would not be considered for any other games.
“We have two right-backs, Barragan and Cancelo, who are better than him. The door is open for him in the winter transfer market,” commented Nuno, who said that midfielder Bruno Zuculini’s situation at the Mestalla is different.
The 21-year-old is on a season-long loan from Manchester City and has had just 44 minutes of first-team action since joining in the summer.
“Zuculini’s situation is different from that of Joao Pereira and I’m sure he is going to get his chance sooner or later.”
Pereira, who was signed from Sporting Lisbon for €3.7m in May 2012, responded to Nuno’s comments by vowing to continue doing his job as long as he is at the club.
“I’m not going to talk about it and I’ll carry on being professional from the first day until the last. Everyone has their opinion,” he told reporters at the club’s training complex.
