Darwin Nunez came in for criticism from some fans after his underwhelming performance during Liverpool’s Champions League win versus Girona…
Darwin Nunez appeared to vow that he will be resilient in the face of criticism from some Liverpool supporters after Tuesday’s Champions League win over Girona.
Nunez lined up in the middle of the Reds’ front three in Spain but struggled to influence proceedings and was the first player that Arne Slot substituted on the night, as Cody Gakpo came on in his place for the final 20 minutes or so.
Nunez divides opinion among Liverpool supporters, and some of those who are not particularly big fans of Nunez were critical of his display against Girona.
The day after the match, Nunez appeared to respond to the criticism, writing on Instagram: “They are not all, they are some. Thank you Reds for your support, we are all still together.” He shared a separate post which simply said: “Resilience.”
Liverpool head coach Slot was asked about Nunez’s struggles against Girona in a post-match press conference and said: “What I can agree on is that he missed a few chances. Then it’s always the question: does this have anything to do with low confidence or is this a situation where he’s in at the moment?
“I think every striker all around the world has periods where every ball goes in, and sometimes he has a period where you try so hard but you’re not able to score. I would have loved to see Darwin score because I think every striker wants to score [and] needs goals – that’s why I kept him in for quite a long time. He was a threat but unfortunately he couldn’t score.”
Nunez joined Liverpool from Benfica two and a half years ago for a huge fee but has failed to live up to expectations of him as a goalscorer, averaging less than a goal every three games for the club.
His struggles this season — he has managed just three goals — have been magnified by the impressive tallies of Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo, who have scored 16, nine and eight goals respectively under Slot.
Earlier this season, Nunez responded to criticism from fans by switching his Instagram profile to private after the Reds suffered what remains their only defeat of the campaign so far, at home to Nottingham Forest.
