Liverpool suffered a surprising defeat to Union Saint-Gilloise in midweek, but the result didn’t matter too much in reality as the club had already topped their Europa League group before the final round of fixtures.
Jurgen Klopp will have had one eye on the upcoming Premier League clash against Manchester United today, and he gave a rest to some of his senior players.
With Erik ten Hag under some pressure at United, it is the perfect time to face the Red Devils and the German will be looking to unleash his strongest available starting XI.
This will include Darwin Nunez, who came on for a brief cameo against USG on Thursday evening, and he will be well-rested to face the Old Trafford side.
Darwin Núñez’s statistics this season
The 6 foot 1 centre-forward has settled into life at Anfield better this season than during his maiden campaign, and he already has seven goals and seven assists across 23 matches during 2023/24.
The Uruguayan has missed 15 big chances however and this is an area in which he really needs to improve, especially if he wants to score 20-plus goals per season.
The striker does rank first across the squad for shots per game (three) along with ranking third for big chances created (six) and third for scoring frequency (a goal every 220 minutes) and this indicates that he could prove to be a solid attacking threat against United today.
Lauded by journalist Theo Squires as an “agent of chaos” before the Reds took on Real Madrid in the Champions League last term, his unpredictability could be a big advantage for Klopp.
United’s defence is flagging, and they have conceded 21 league goals already this term, six more than Liverpool.
Darwin Núñez’s record against Manchester United
The former Benfica hitman has only played against United once during his career. He was suspended for the first meeting of the 2022/23 campaign last August as Liverpool suffered a 2-1 defeat, but he was available for the return clash a few months later.
That match proved to be historic as Liverpool secured a stunning 7-0 win over their rivals and humiliated United in the process.
Nunez managed to score twice during the tie while also missing a big chance and taking four shots in total and with a bit of luck, he may well have had a hat trick.
This performance could play a part in Klopp’s selection ahead of the game and with several big names rested prior to the clash, the Anfield side will be raring to go.
Another massive win against the Red Devils could further boost their Premier League title hopes and should give them the confidence to secure another couple of wins before the end of 2023.
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Nunez may have missed a few chances this season, but he has improved following a stop-start 2022/23 season and if he can replicate his display during the 7-0 win back in March, the United defence will struggle to cope with him.
