Liverpool star dubbed 'much maligned' has held talks with European title contenders over summer transfer
Liverpool are preparing to offload some players in the summer transfer window
Final preparations will be taking place around Liverpool ahead of the club’s much-awaited Premier League title celebrations over the weekend. On Sunday the Premier League trophy will be lifted at Anfield at the end of the club’s final day clash with Crystal Palace, the Reds getting to celebrate a highly successful season with the fans.
These celebrations will then extend from Anfield to across the city on Monday 26 May, when the Reds’ open-top bus trophy parade will take place beginning at 2:30pm BST. It will be a truly special couple of days for the club, which fans and players alike have had to wait a long time for.
But as soon as the dust settles on the celebrations and staff return to work on the Tuesday, preparations will begin ahead of the new season with a lot of squad amending likely to take place over the summer. While some transfer business has already been done by the Reds, big decisions will need to be made about the futures of some of the club’s major stars.
Nunez ‘holding talks’ ahead of a potential move
One player who has been tipped for an exit this summer is Darwin Nunez, with Arne Slot likely to target a new big-money striker if the Uruguayan parts ways with the club.
According to a report by Caught Offside, Nunez’s representatives have held talks with Napoli ahead of a potential transfer to the Italian giants. He is said to be a “concrete target” for Napoli and head coach Antonio Conte, though they may target a loan move for the forward. These reports indicate that a move away from England is a distinct possibility for the 25-year-old this summer.
Nunez has also attracted interest from the likes of Atlético Madrid, AC Milan, RB Leipzig and Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal, with the latter a potentially attractive proposition for Liverpool should they offer a substantial transfer fee.
Should Nunez make his final appearance for Liverpool this weekend, his three-year stay at the club will be a difficult one to sum up. At times scintillating and unplayable, at others verging on infuriating, the former Benfica man has struggled for consistency at Anfield.
It is possible that Nunez felt the heavy pressure of his price tag on his arrival for a fee rising to around £85m from Benfica in 2022. Sometimes used as an impact substitute in his first season at the club, Nunez often lacked the final pass or finishing touch but he always caught the eye when he played.
Two-goal contributions from the bench at Newcastle United (in 2023) and Brentford stand out in the memory, as does a last-gasp headed winner which sparked fury at Nottingham Forest last season, but the reality is that a Liverpool career which begun as raw potential has ended with many believing Nunez simply doesn’t have what it takes to lead the line for the Reds.
Chris Sutton said on 5 Live after Nunez’s winning contribution at Brentford in January: "Arne Slot said in the week that he couldn't get Darwin Nunez firing. What an important goal that could be for Liverpool.
"That's how you win titles," he continued. "Going to the end, fighting until the end and taking your opportunities. The much maligned Darwin Nunez - he doesn't score enough goals, doesn't contribute enough - well he has now.”
Nunez has only found the net once more since then in the Premier League, his total of five league strikes less than half the 11 he managed in Jurgen Klopp’s final year at the club. The goals have dried up, and so has the fan excitement which embodied Nunez’s early times at the club - which means it may be the right time for both parties to part ways.