Nehuén Pérez aims for World Cup spot with Argentina 🇦🇷 | OneFootball

Who would have thought. Nehuén Pérez, just as he had promised at the end of last season, reappeared transformed in 2025/26 and, after just four matches, has already convinced FC Porto fans that the 17 million euros invested were not, after all, a bad deal. The center-back was Francesco Farioli’s initial choice and has lived up to expectations, establishing himself as one of the pillars of a team that has won every game and conceded only one goal.

Nehuén Pérez’s goal now is to maintain this level throughout the season, to help FC Porto win titles and, at the same time, strengthen his chances of joining the Argentine national team for the 2026 World Cup, where he hopes to contribute to defending the 2022 title. Although he was not called up in Lionel Scaloni’s recent squads, the player knows he is still on the coach’s radar and that, if he keeps up this early-season form, he will have every chance of being included in the squad for the tournament in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

According to Portal dos Dragões, Pérez is currently fully focused on FC Porto and on consolidating his place in Farioli’s starting eleven. The competition has intensified, especially with the arrival of Kiwior, but this only serves as motivation for the Argentine. At 25, he feels benefited by the Italian coach’s preferred tactical system, which he considers the most suited to his characteristics. Pérez’s numbers are clearly superior to those of 2024/25—more assertive and taking greater risks with his passing, more effective in tackles, and more dominant in aerial duels. The sample size is small, but the improvement compared to the previous season, which was considered disastrous, is evident.

Finally, one of the player’s goals is to improve his discipline: in 2024/25 he accumulated 17 yellow cards in 39 games for FC Porto. At the start of this season, he has kept a clean sheet in this regard, which could also open up more playing opportunities for him.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.