“Will Darwin Núñez become more effective in front of the opposite net?” This is the question that I know is surely haunting many Liverpool fans late at night, as a memory of Nunez missing a crucial shot replays in their heads. He is currently in poor form but let’s take a closer look at why and if there is hope in the near future for the fans.
The Núñez Puzzle
Darwin Núñez is not having a problem getting good chances or getting into goal-scoring positions. In fact, if you have ever watched him play, you will say that he is adept at finding spaces, as a good striker should be. The problem is the finishing. But if only it were so simple as substituting him out for a more clinical finisher for Jurgen Klopp. The truth is, the only person on the team who has far better numbers than the Uruguayan attacker is Salah. Jota has recently slightly edged away from Núñez who has 8 compared to Jota’s nine goals for Liverpool this season across all competitions. One important detail that is missing is that Jota has played
almost ten fewer games than Núñez.
So why doesn’t Jurgen Klopp just switch out Núñez for Jota who is seemingly more effective in front of goal and will be less wasteful? Well the data has a story to tell beyond that simple one-liner about goals. Liverpool is now a total of 17 games without a loss when Núñez is on the team, and have lost the three times he has not been on – stats from www.sportsloci.com.
Núñez isn’t Going Anywhere
Núñez has in recent times become a key figure for Jurgen Klopp, and the team needs him. After the departures of Firmino and Mane – breaking up the once feared attacking trio of Liverpool that is practically stuff of legends at this point – there were a lot of questions to be answered. Salah has continued to stuff the stat sheet as he has accustomed us to, but he is still in need of support from other players to also contribute to the attack. Darwin Núñez has so far been the more consistent performer for the team. Yes, if only he could just score the goals he already is working so hard to get in the position to make, he would be the full package. But for the time being, he makes defenders think twice and often loses them with runs behind their backs. I think that until Liverpool find another star player in the attack that can consistently contribute to the attacking play and the score sheet : we will keep seeing Núñez.
Will he Get Better?
Darwin Núñez has shown signs of what he can become at Liverpool, and at Benfica he was a menace against other teams. We have seen players take big steps before, and as with a lot of things in life, sometimes it is just time and maturity that cures the illness. Take Vinicius Junior for example, there were many that had already thrown the towel, he missed shots for fun, and missed them badly. His decision-making at Real Madrid was horrible, but they stuck the course with him and he himself was determined to get better. Would you believe what happened next? To keep the story short and sweet, he worked on what he was doing wrong, and in turn started to score and be a more valuable asset for the team. Let’s hope that Darwin Núñez does the same, and that his current frustrations are not here to stay.