Liverpool legend Steve Nicol urges Jurgen Klopp to play Darwin Nunez more often
Speaking to ESPN (h/t Liverpool Echo), Liverpool legend Steve Nicol urged gaffer Jurgen Klopp to give more minutes to the club’s headline summer signing Darwin Nunez. The Uruguayan joined the Reds in the early weeks of the summer transfer window for a potential club-record fee of £85m.
Nicol also went on to explain in what factors Darwin could be better than Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino and what makes the 23-year-old different from the Portuguese and the Brazilian.
The former Liverpool right-back believes that he needs minutes “to tune in” with the rest of the squad until when Liverpool cannot “get the best out of him”.
“As we all know, he’s not the finished article, he’s very raw but what he brings is completely different to what you get from Jota and Firmino, he gives you the two things they can’t do.”
“He’s the little guy in the penalty box that’s meant to pop up and put the ball in the net because I don’t think he does particularly well when it comes to link-up play or holding the ball up.”
Darwin has seen a limited number of appearances this season after the Uruguayan was sent-off for violent conduct in the Crystal Palace fixture. Following that, he missed important fixtures against Manchester United, Bournemouth and Everton.
From six appearances across all competitions, Darwin currently has two goals and one assist. He would hope to get those numbers up starting soon. In the two UCL appearances for the club he has had, Darwin has looked bleak, to say the least.
Nicol also went on to say that Jota and Bobby aren’t particularly brilliant, which he thinks Nunez is. The Brazil international has, in all fairness, enjoyed a decent start to this season with three goals and three assists in eight appearances.
“This guys not going to get better until he gets minutes on the field. I don’t think the other two are particularly brilliant so get him on.”
Even with Nicol’s comments, Klopp would be wise to trust his gut. If it means Nunez being benched a few times, then so be it.
Erling Haaland has taken to the Premier League like fish to water. The Manchester City striker is firing on all cylinders but that shouldn’t rush us into demanding the same from our new striker.
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Andy Robertson had to wait a long time for regular game-time and it doesn’t matter if Darwin sits on the sidelines as a fully ready player is better than someone who is still half-cooked.
However, with the magical Thiago Alcantara now fit, perhaps the kind of service our forwards get can improve, as the Spain international is a huge upgrade on the players we have been playing in recent weeks due to an injury crisis in that position.
