Why Liverpool Need Darwin Núñez

This past summer, Liverpool smashed their transfer record with an £85 million ($100 million) move for Uruguayan striker Darwin Núñez. Rivals and fans alike raised doubts on whether he was worth the money, pointing to the well-established striker Erling Haaland, who was also brought to Manchester City this past summer, as the better alternative. Following the disappointment of missing out on the Premier League yet again, and losing to Real Madrid in the Champions League final, there are certain flaws and shortcomings in Liverpool’s system that need to be improved upon if they are to maintain the high standards that they have set for themselves in seasons past. Núñez has the expertise to address these issues, and under the guidance of manager Jurgen Klopp, he is too good to be written off and can help elevate Liverpool. Simply put: Liverpool needed him.

A shocking stat from the three cup finals that Liverpool played in is that they did not score a single time. 0 goals in 330 minutes of gametime. That is indicative of a problem that has been brewing for a while now. For the past five seasons, the Redmen have played with Brazilian Roberto Firmino as a false-nine—someone who dropped into the midfield to help win the ball, create space for his teammates, and overall do the “dirty work” for the team. Firmino is unique, but he is not an out-and-out goalscorer, and in the last three seasons his goals have dried up. This leads to Liverpool’s problems when playing in games where teams play compactly and are hard to break down through the middle. They do not have a direct option through a true striker, so they resort to countless crosses from the wing from wingbacks Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson, which seldom produce anything. Struggling to break down and score against compact teams end up costing them points in draws or one-goal losses in games which they should be winning. In the grand scheme of things, losing silly points is also what loses you titles. In matches like those, they needed someone who could make something happen, someone who could grab the match by the scruff of the neck, break the defensive line directly, and score. Núñez is that player.

Interestingly, Núñez has been on Liverpool’s radar for some time now, ever since one of their scouts spotted him playing Uruguayan team Penarol’s under-19 team in 2015. What appealed to Liverpool was his smart positioning, ability to make penetrating runs, his explosive speed, and a great aerial presence at 6’2”. Liverpool has monitored his progress since, and last year, with his former side Benefica taking on Liverpool in the quarter-finals of the Champions league, he got the perfect opportunity to audition for them. In both legs, Núñez wreaked havoc on Liverpool’s backline, scoring twice, which could have been more had two of his goals not been offside. He impressed Klopp across those two games, with the German manager claiming, “He is good, really good. If he stays healthy, he has a big career ahead of him.” These two games proved to Liverpool that the young striker is capable of playing against big teams on big occasions.

In addition to these games, Núñez’s statistics reaffirmed that he is the man for Liverpool. Per 90 minutes last season, he took a whopping 7.48 touches in the opposing team's penalty box. This saw him achieve an expected goal for non-penalty goals of .48, which he actually exceeded with 0.76 non-penalty goals, landing him in the 97th percentile. Apart from his direct goals, Núñez shows that he offers a wider range of skills to offer, like his ability to create chances for his teammates by being a forward-thinker. On average per game, his 5.07 progressive carries and 1.51 dribbles completed led him to directly create 1.4 goal-scoring opportunities per 90. All of these figures from last season put him in the high 80th to 90th percentile, showing that on paper, he has an excellent track record, and showing that he offers Liverpool versatility by providing more than just goalscoring.

The most obvious comparison that can be made to Núñez is Manchester City’s 6’4” Erling Haaland, as both are of similar age, play a similar position, and came to the same league at the same time. Like Núñez, the Norwegian was brought to Manchester to be their out-and-out striker, something which City has not had since the departure of club legend Sergio Agüero. Many view the price point of Haaland as highly attractive, as on the face of it, the £51 million ($60 million) fee City paid for Haaland seems to be a bargain when compared to the $100 million sum splashed by Liverpool. However, when agent fees, signing bonuses, and the monumental wages Haaland wanted are taken into account, Haaland will actually end up costing City up to an astronomical £213 million ($250 million).

At only 22, Haaland is already one of the best players in the world and his statistics back that up. Surpassing Núñez with 0.87 non-penalty goals per 90 last season, his goalscoring is in the 99th percentile. However, Haaland falls short in areas where Núñez excels, having a much lower progressive pass and carry rate when compared to his Uruguayan rival at just 1.61 and 2.53 per 90 respectively. Núñez also completed more dribbles per 90, with Haaland having just 0.54 compared to his 1.52. Statistics like these show that while Núñez does have a lower direct goal scoring record compared to Haaland, he offers a broader range of attacking output for the team through his progressive carries, passes, and dribbles which create time, space and opportunities for his teammates at a lower price point.

At the end of the day, the expectation will be on Liverpool and Manchester City to provide us with yet another mouth-watering war for the 2022/23 title. Liverpool’s recruitment of Núñez will always be the target of doubt, just as with any player when they command such a large sum of money. And these doubts are warranted, as Liverpool is off to a slow start to the season, with just one win in their first four games, with Núñez even receiving a red-card for a hot-headed headbutt on Crystal Palace center-back Joachim Andersen. But he has time to learn from his mistakes and improve. Jurgen Klopp has done a brilliant job in years past with developing young players, and with Núñez’s unlocked potential, he will no doubt provide Liverpool with unique attacking prowess and brilliant footballing ability.