Michael Owen doesn’t expect Darwin Nunez to be a Liverpool player next season, with the Uruguayan expected to leave after three underwhelming years at Anfield. Nunez joined Liverpool for a big fee in 2022 but has scored just 40 goals in 136 games for the Reds and has seen his game time slashed significantly under Arne Slot.
Nunez, who said last week that he wanted to forget about his Liverpool plight during the international break, was the subject of interest from clubs in Saudi Arabia during the January transfer window but Slot was unwilling to let him leave as the Reds chased glory on four fronts.
The Reds expect there to be a strong market for Nunez this summer, when they will probably look to replace him with a more consistent goal-scorer.
Former Liverpool striker Owen told talkSPORT: “I can’t see Darwin Nunez in a Liverpool shirt next season, personally. I think there’s interest in him as well from one or two Premier League teams, of course there’s foreign interest as well, so I can’t see Darwin being a Liverpool player next season.”
Nunez recently came in for criticism from Slot for a perceived lack of effort, who said last month: “For the second time in a row I wasn’t happy with his work effort, against Wolves and against Villa. I can’t accept if a player doesn’t give everything. That is clear. I can accept it once, but twice was a bit too much. That’s why I addressed it.
“If you miss a chance, you need to be fighting for the team. I’m not saying he didn’t do that at all, but it wasn’t the usual Darwin, the one that is loved by the fans. That is mainly because he always works so hard.”
Among the players that have been linked with potentially replacing Nunez at Liverpool are Newcastle’s Alexander Isak and Atletico Madrid’s Julian Alvarez, while a spurious report emerged in Spain over the weekend linking Harry Kane with a shock move to Anfield.
