Ian Wright says he ‘always knew’ that the previously criticised Darwin Nunez would produce for Liverpool after Jurgen Klopp’s men thrashed Manchester United 7-0 at Anfield on Sunday, as he told Premier League Productions (06/03/23 at 2:20 pm).
The 23-year-old netted a brace on an afternoon Liverpool fans will never forget and showcased why the club paid a club-record amount of £85 million for the striker in the summer (Sky Sports).
It probably doesn’t help Nunez that he arrived at the same time as Erling Haaland, and given the Manchester City star’s record-breaking season so far, everything else in comparison is going to be seen as minuscule.
Nunez did have lift off when he scored in the Community Shield against Manchester City, whilst it was also sprinkled with that red card against Crystal Palace.
But even though he was questioned in between, he still has eight Premier League goals from 19 games, which is some going for a player in his debut campaign and someone who is yet to really get his engine going.
Either way, Wright was loving what he saw from the hard-hitting player on Merseyside yesterday as Liverpool humiliated their old rivals.
“Nunez, who I always knew,” said Wright. “When you look at his goal XG and everything. He wasn’t reaching it simply because maybe he chose a different way to take the chance and he was still trying to finish how he finishes.
“He is still doing exactly what he does. He works hard. He tries to finish, cute or whatever it is. He heads it, so you are knowing, at some stage, when it clicks for him, it’s going to happen.”
NUNEZ CAN BAG 20+
It won’t happen in the Premier League this season, but the £140k-a-week Uruguay star (Spotrac) has a really good chance of hitting 20+ goals in a single Premier League season for the Reds.
It needs to be remembered that Klopp has had major issues with his team this term, and regardless of that 7-0 win, a refresh is still going to be needed.
Once Liverpool are settled and they have a new midfield in place, then that added energy, which was shown against Manchester United, will be there from the get-go next season and showcased on a more consistent basis, which will help the forward players to cook a lot more.
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