Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has praised Reds forward Darwin Nunez for his impressive run of form this season.
The Liverpool manager, speaking to the club’s media team ahead of the Manchester City clash, says he and his Reds coaches “want to use him as often as possible”.
Nunez has well and truly turned a corner this season following a difficult maiden campaign at Liverpool.
Last season, the Uruguay international struggled on the pitch and in front of goal. And with his hefty transfer fee, criticism became fierce.
That’s no longer the case. Nunez is dazzling for club and country and, while there still is the odd miss, on the whole he’s proving his worth and, crucially, looks like he’s getting better and better.
Nunez currently has seven goals and six assists from 17 Liverpool outings in all competitions this term, and for the two-time World Cup winners, he has five goals and three assists in 2023-24.
Ahead of Liverpool heading to Man City for their 12:30pm GMT kickoff, Klopp celebrated the fact that the £140,000-a-week (Spotrac) striker is in such a good place at present.
On assessing the Liverpool players who have been away on international duty, Klopp told the Reds media team: “They all came back pretty much from international [games] so we have to make these decisions.
“For these decisions I have to wait until: at 3pm is the meeting and 4pm is training, so until then. Look in their eyes, talk to them and then figure out who is ready to start and who is probably better to bring on.
“They all I would say, nearly all, had a really good international break. Colombia were really successful, Lucho scored twice. Uruguay obviously did really well. So we have to see.
“Yes, [Darwin Nunez] is in a good moment and we want to use him as often as possible. If it’s possible, I don’t know in this moment.”
Nunez shining for Liverpool and Uruguay ahead of controversial early kickoff after international break – TBR View
It’s great to see Nunez finally doing so well, and it’s also great to hear Klopp regularly sing his praises.
At the same time, it’s a shame that he’ll likely have to rush back in to action in Saturday’s early kickoff after flying back halfway across the world in the early hours of Wednesday evening.
It beggars belief that two of the strongest teams in the Premier League – and with the most international players – would be forced to play in a 12:30pm Saturday kickoff just after the break.
Admittedly, the international break is always a faff and fans can’t wait for the proper competition (club football) to return. So from a fan’s point of view, it’s a great return to action.
However, the players aren’t machines. We’ve been seeing so many injuries, fatigue and burnout over the past couple of years and it’s just not sustainable. There needs to be a compromise.