The million-dollar query for Arne Slot at Liverpool is the way to get the very best out of Darwin Nunez in his third season at Anfield, with the top coach’s response clear.
Nunez heads into his third marketing campaign at Liverpool with the identical questions looming over him, having scored 33 objectives in 96 video games thus far for the membership.
Although devastating at his medical greatest, the Uruguayan has proved frustratingly inconsistent since becoming a member of from Benfica in 2022, lacking the second-most massive probabilities of any participant in final season’s Premier League (27).
He had entered the switch window with doubts over his future, however Slot has vowed to work with the No. 9 similar to he did Santiago Gimenez at Feyenoord.
It’s unlikely Nunez will begin within the season opener at Ipswich on Saturday, with Diogo Jota established as first alternative after pre-season, however in his pre-match press convention, Slot was requested how he plans to maximise his potential.
His response was easy: “Convey him as a lot as we will into scoring positions.”
“However once more, I believe each particular person advantages from workforce efficiency,” the top coach continued.
“If we, as a workforce, can deliver our attackers – not solely him, but in addition the opposite ones – as a lot as we will into harmful positions, these gamers will rating objectives.
“That’s additionally what we’ve seen in pre-season, the place we even scored objectives out of smaller possibilities.
“So it’s as much as us to deliver him, or Diogo or different attackers, as a lot as we will into promising positions for them.
“After which he, like all of the others, will rating the objectives.”
At face worth, that appears as if Slot plans to make use of Nunez in a extra easy function than maybe seen below Jurgen Klopp.
In Klopp’s system, the 25-year-old appeared one thing of an in poor health match, missing the off-ball nous to press defenders successfully in addition to linking up together with his team-mates.
Nunez is extra of an out-and-out striker who thrives when operating onto passes, which might definitely go well with Slot’s ‘up, again and thru’ sample of attacking play.
Jota is rightly anticipated to start out in opposition to Ipswich, however it’s unlikely to be lengthy earlier than Nunez known as into motion by his new head coach – and there shall be actual intrigue as to how he performs.
