Slot Defends Nunez’s Overall Contribution Amidst Goal-Scoring Struggles

Darwin Nunez joined Liverpool from Benfica in summer 2022, in a transfer deal initially valued at £64m, with the potential to increase to £85m through add-ons. Liverpool’s head coach, Arne Slot, has come to the defense of Darwin Nunez, emphasizing the forward’s comprehensive impact despite his current difficulties in scoring goals. The 25-year-old Uruguay international has netted only three goals across 19 club matches this season and notably missed several scoring opportunities during Tuesday’s 1-0 Champions League victory over Girona. Ahead of his Premier League-leading team’s home fixture against Fulham on Saturday (15:00 GMT), Slot stated: “For me, he has impact. If you only look at goals, he hasn’t scored the amount of goals that he wants to score, or we want a number nine to score, but he does have impact in his work-rate. He’s part of a team that scores a lot of goals and is winning a lot. Of course, as a number nine you want to score more goals and that’s definitely what he wants as well. But I’m not only judging Mohamed Salah on his goals and Darwin on his goals – I also judge them on their work-rate and what they bring to the team. The fans support him so much that maybe he wants it too much.” Slot substituted Nunez in the 71st minute of the Girona match, expressing his belief that the forward’s performance in that game was impacted by his missed opportunities. Nunez subsequently posted on Instagram, seemingly addressing criticism regarding his display, stating: “They are not all, they are some. Thank you Reds for your support, we are all still together.” A separate post from him featured the word “Resiliencia,” which translates from Spanish to resilience. Slot further commented: “I made it clear to him that he’s not only judged on the goals he scores but the team performance. Ideally, he scores a few goals more. It is the life of a number nine – sometimes you score, sometimes you don’t – but what should always be there is the work-rate. That’s what he had apart from two games – the first one against Las Palmas [in pre-season] and the last half hour against Girona wasn’t of the standards he should have and that had a lot to do with him being disappointed after missing a few chances.” For the upcoming match against Fulham, Slot might see the return of forwards Diogo Jota and Federico Chiesa. Portugal international Jota has been sidelined due to a chest injury since 20 October, whereas Chiesa has faced fitness challenges since his transfer from Juventus during the summer. Liverpool approaches the Fulham fixture holding a four-point advantage over Chelsea, who are in second place, and with an outstanding game after their scheduled match against local rivals Everton last Saturday was postponed due to unfavorable weather. While Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has downplayed his team’s prospects of contending for the title, Slot has expressed admiration for the Blues’ performance this season, specifically referencing their showing in October when Liverpool secured a 2-1 league victory against them at Anfield. Slot commented: “It was one of the games, maybe the only game, where I felt the other team was better than us during that game.” He continued: “That’s not to say for the long term they are better than us, but during the game they had more ball possession than us and were threatening us more than any other team until now. I’m not there to judge which position they will end in the league table. I have to focus on my own team but Chelsea have been impressive this season so far, that’s for sure.” Slot received the Premier League manager of the month award for November, and forward Mohamed Salah was recognized with the player award for the same month. During November, Liverpool defeated Brighton, Aston Villa, and Southampton, maintaining their position at the top of the table and securing Slot his inaugural managerial award. Salah contributed four goals in November, marking his sixth time winning the player award.