Is Darwin Nunez Becoming The Full Package?

Comparing his stats this season with his debut season for the Reds

Written before the Liverpool-Toulouse game on 26/10/2023

After a slightly indifferent first season at Liverpool, things are slowly starting to fall in place for Darwin Núñez. Although the Uruguayan still got 15 goals and four assists from just over 2300 minutes of football last season, the consensus was that he can be much better than that. 

The start of this campaign has shown us exactly that. With just about 500 minutes of football in all competitions so far, he has got four goals and four assists. Not just that, he has added a lot more to his game in terms of off the ball work, being unselfish in the final third and hurting opposition defences in different ways.

Now, the hope is that the former Benfica man stays fit till the end of the next international break and gets a regular run in the side from the start during the December and January games. With Mohamed Salah missing a few weeks of action in January/February due to AFCON, Liverpool will need the likes of Núñez to step up in that time.

Let’s deep dive into the Uruguayan’s numbers this season and do various comparisons to show how he has progressed as a player at Anfield after a proper pre-season in the summer (unlike last year when everything was done in a hurry to accommodate a mid-season World Cup).

D. Núñez - 23/24 PL Numbers Ranked

This section has Núñez’s numbers from this season so far, ranked among the strikers and wide forwards in the Premier League. Players who have played a minimum of 350 minutes are included for sample size purposes.

Three goals and three assists are great returns for someone who has played close to only 350 minutes so far in the league. Looking at those ranks, it shows you how well the Uruguayan has done compared to some of the top forwards in the division. Mind you, he is yet to start games on a regular basis (only three starts in the league). International breaks and 12:30pm fixtures on a Saturday after that has meant that Jürgen Klopp has had to protect him on occasions.