Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez has the perfect answer to the critics after the Copa America goal

Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez is rarely boring. He performed well on and off the pitch in his last appearance for Uruguay, sending a message of praise to his critics after hitting the ball into the net.

Uruguay began their Copa America campaign against Panama, with Nunez sealing the result with a left-footed volley in the 85th minute to make it 2-0 – although there were two more goals in the end, one for each side, making the final score 3-1.

But if his hat-trick in a recent international match showed Arne Slot’s potential, this game may also have prepared the Liverpool boss for the day-to-day reality of managing Nunez, with many of the frustrations faced by Jürgen Klopp on display.

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Before his confident finish, Nunez had wasted a number of better chances, one of which he fired straight at the goalkeeper after being set free in a one-on-one situation and another which he spooned wide of the right post when it looked like he might head the ball into the corner.

Fortunately, Nunez reacted very calmly after the final whistle. He looked at the missed opportunities with a philosophical attitude (via Anfield sector on X):

“I’ll make five or ten mistakes, but I’ll try eleven times. You must never give up, otherwise nothing will ever come of it.”

It must be said about Nunez that he has embodied this philosophy since his move to Liverpool. Although he is visibly frustrated at times, one thing he has never stopped shooting.

Last year, Nunez ranked in the 99th percentile in shots per 90 seconds among strikers in Europe’s top five leagues, averaging a whopping 4.85 per game (FBRef).

Accordingly, his “expected goals” rate is way up there in the 98th percentile, and even his actual goals rate is in the 79th percentile. He may be annoying at times, but he is reaping the rewards of his tireless work and effort in the right positions.

Ideally, Slot will find a way to get the ratio of “errors” to goals closer to five than to ten, but Nunez seems to be heading into the new Liverpool season with just the right mindset.

Liverpool.com says: Fair play to Nunez. He had to face criticism from many critics and yet was criticised for his misses in a game in which he scored an excellent goal but continued to play a smart game.

Of course, he is not immune to negative feedback. But his game has never been overly affected and he has all the makings of an extremely valuable weapon under slot.