Arne Slot tells Nunez to be the player that Liverpool fans adore

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot tells struggling Uruguayan forward Darwin Nunez that he draws the line at lack of effort. Slot backed Nunez after his massive open-goal miss against Aston Villa but criticised his overall performance level after that miss.

Liverpool suffered four draws in the Premier League since the start of 2025 which put pressure on the current squad. However, the emphatic victory against Manchester City at Etihad established an 11-point lead at the top of the Premier League.

The excruciating schedule will have phases when players struggle to perform but the level of desired work rate stays high. These high standards are the key differential factors between any club and a top club like Liverpool.

Speaking to the media before the Newcastle United game (via BBC), Slot highlighted that he criticized Nunez for his uncharacteristic poor work rate as it happened twice which is unacceptable at Liverpool. He said:

“I helped him by saying you can miss a chance. I wasn’t only hard on him. But for the second time in a row I wasn’t happy with his work effort, against Wolves and against Villa. I can’t accept if a player doesn’t give everything. That is clear. I can accept it once, but twice was a bit too much. That’s why I addressed it. If you miss a chance, you need to be fighting for the team. I’m not saying he didn’t do that at all, but it wasn’t the usual Darwin, the one that is loved by the fans. That is mainly because he always works so hard.”

Slot has generally backed his players, irrespective of how important they are to his plan unless they stop working hard. The Dutch head coach has highlighted Wataru Endo as the epitome of the kind of mentality that a top player should have.

There is no denying that Nunez is one of the players would could potentially leave the club next summer. Nevertheless, the 25-year-old has enjoyed unconditional love and support from the Reds fanbase and backing from his teammates and staff.

Even Liverpool fans could tolerate missed chances if he never stops working hard and creating things for his teammates. However, the Uruguay international displayed visible disappointment after the Villa miss and ruined the next chance he received.

His teammates provided him with an opportunity for redemption moment after the miss, having Mohamed Salah parallel to Nunez with only Emil Martinez to beat. Nunez opted to dribble past Martinez instead of feeding Salah as the Villa goalkeeper made a perfectly timed tackle.

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• Clinical but unreliable: Liverpool star’s fitness is a recurring problem for Slot

Slot has a glaring issue with the number nine position that he could resolve during the summer. However, that solution cannot change the course of the current season as Liverpool fans hope Nunez can influence the season positively again.