Darwin Nunez joined Liverpool in 2022 with a lot of expectations. The Reds had to replace Sadio Mane, who left for Bayern Munich. Nunez came into the limelight after his impressive Champions League performances, and Liverpool won the race to sign him. Things didn’t start in the way that he expected, and he wasn’t a regular figure in Klopp’s starting 11.
Liverpool had a disappointing 2022–23 season in the English Premier League as they failed to reach the top four. This season, they have some new faces on the team, and the team looks like a serious top-four contender. Nunez was warming the bench in the first three matches of the current season. His match-winning cameo off the bench against Newcastle United is what caught the eye of the manager. Let’s take a look at why the German manager must trust his Uruguayan forward.
Most natural #9 in the current squad
Liverpool play in the traditional 4-3-3 formation. Sadio Mane, Mo Salah, and Roberto Firmino were the forward line pairing for Jurgen Klopp for many years. Jota came into the side, but he is not a number nine. Luis Diaz is another option in the attack, but he is a left-side player. This means that Klopp only has one natural number, nine, and he is Darwin Nunez.
Last season, Klopp used him as a centre-forward and a left-wing forward. The manager has decided to bring him back to a more central role, and this can be observed by looking at the above touch map. Nunez has played more centrally and has taken nine touches inside the opposition penalty box in four appearances. The player came off the bench in the first three Premier League matches and started against Aston Villa before the international break.
Getting on the scoresheet
Darwin Nunez had to earn his chance to get into the starting 11. 30 minutes against Chelsea were followed by just 13 against Bournemouth. Liverpool were trailing 1-0 against Newcastle United in their third encounter. On came Nunez, who scored a brace to turn the game around for his side. Klopp handed him a start against Aston Villa, and Nunez responded by creating a goal for his teammate.
Overall, Nunez has taken eight shots in the current season, and his two shots on target have found the back of the net. The shot map shows that the player has found space inside and on the edge of the six-yard box. He will look to convert such chances.
What else can Klopp expect?
Jurgen Klopp knows that his attacker can offer more goals throughout the season. Nunez scored nine goals in his first season in England, and this time he has a chance to get into double figures. Averaging nearly four shots per 90 minutes, the 24-year-old had a decent accuracy rate of 44.3%. Most of the shots came from the left side.
Another ability that the player possesses is that he can run with the ball. Last season, he made 2.45 progressive runs on average and had a decent dribbling success rate on the edge of the penalty box. This means that Klopp can also rotate his players.
Darwin Nunez has the ability to win matches, and he will look to score more in the 2023–24 campaign. Jurgen Klopp will also demand more consistency from his forward and hope that he contributes to their success.
Visuals via TFA data viz engine
