Darwin Nunez: Should Liverpool upgrade on “too slow” striker in January?
Darwin Nunez’s future at Liverpool could be over within the next year, according to former Reds centre-back Jamie Carragher.
When the Uruguayan signed for Liverpool, there was a lot of pressure. He was immediately compared to Erling Haaland, who joined Manchester City in the same window. Haaland won that battle, but Nunez is now in a fight against himself.
Nunez has now played 114 games for Liverpool across all competitions, scoring 36 goals and providing 19 assists. Of those 36 goals, 22 have come in the Premier League, which is the second-most of any Liverpool player since the start of the 2022-23 campaign. He also sits third for assists with 12.
This season, Nunez has scored two goals in 11 Premier League games, the third-most among Liverpool players. Mohamed Salah (13) and Luis Diaz (5) have both netted more than Nunez. And Nunez seems to be battling Diaz for his spot in the team.
Nunez did start against Newcastle in midweek, had took three shots with only Salah (4) taking more for Liverpool. But Nunez failed to hit the target, missing two big chances.
The Uruguayan hasn’t really staked his claim to be the starting striker at Liverpool. And Carragher believes his time could be running out.
“We said we don’t know what he is going to do so how will the defenders… nobody ever says that about a good player do they?” Carragher told the Overlap while watching Liverpool’s game against Newcastle United.
“He cost £63m with add-ons and there is no way he has got the add-ons.”
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He added: “I’m not sure he’s here next year, I think he’ll probably move on. He’s more like a cult hero because he’s a bit mad and he likes to run around, but he’s better than [Divock] Origi.”
Looking at his Squawka Score, Nunez has a rating of 59% this season, lower than Diogo Jota’s 65%. The Uruguayan ranks in the 20-40th percentile for goals, non-penalty xG and big chances scored among other metrics. Former Liverpool striker Robbie Fowler was also scathing in his analysis of Nunez, drawing a comparison to Salah.
“I think few times, Darwin Nunez gets into an area where his anticipation is a little bit too slow,” Fowler told Amazon Prime Sport.
“With Mo [Salah], you sort of expect him to be where the ball should be. Whereas the No.9, Darwin Nunez, he probably waits for something to happen as opposed to Salah, who makes things happen.”
But if Liverpool do get rid of Nunez, who could replace him? Or who could come in in January to pre-empt any departure?
Omar Marmoush is the name on everyone’s lips this season, after his fantastic season with Eintracht Frankfurt. He’s in the top five for best strikers across Europe’s top five league this season per the Squawka Score, coming in with a rating of 85%. The Egyptian has averaged 1.16 goals per 90 minutes in the Bundesliga, alongside 0.63 intentional assists. Marmoush has also scored 0.71 big chances, proving deadly at the key moments.
Keeping in the Bundesliga, Jonathan Burkardt is having a decent campaign for Main, with nine goals in 12 games. The 24-year-old German striker has averaged 0.85 goals per 90 in the Bundesliga this season, with 0.66 big chances scored. But he doesn’t get involved as much as other strikers, averaging 4.17 touches in the opposition box and just 1.42 non-penalty shots on target per 90.
Liverpool may also look to the Premier League. Alexander Isak is the big name, and he’ll be fresh in Liverpool’s mind after his goal against them on Wednesday. The Swedish striker has only averaged 0.47 goals per 90 in the Premier League this season, but he endured a tough patch at the start of the season. That rough run is well and truly over, with Isak getting back to his best. Isak does still average 2.33 non-penalty shots on target per 90 in the Premier League, in the 80-95th percentile among strikers.
And then there’s Jhon Duran. The Colombian striker is well-known as a super sub, and he hasn’t started a league game for Aston Villa this season. But he’ll want to prove himself as a starter, and he was linked with a move to Chelsea in the summer.
Duran has averaged 1.03 goals per 90 in the Premier League this season, from 0.95 non-penalty xG on Target. He’s scored 0.78 big chances and averaged 3.1 non-penalty shots on target per 90. Of course, those numbers will be impacted by his lack of full matches, but there are good underlying stats.
