Darwin Núñez looks ‘lost’ at the club, adds former Reds defender
Darwin Núñez looks ‘lost’ at the club, adds former Reds defender
Former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock has told BetBrain that he believes Mohamed Salah will sign a new contract with the Reds and begin the start of next season at Anfield.
Asked who he thought could replace Salah if the Egyptian leaves the club, Warnock replied: “I don’t have to answer who I think will replace Mohamed Salah – because he will be at Liverpool! I think the contract situation will get resolved. You can see on his face that he’s happy when he’s playing for the club and I think he wants to get the contract signed. Even when he came out to the media, it was a ‘I don’t want to go – I want to be here!’
When pondering Mo’s options in case he leaves the Reds, he fails to see a fit, especially in light of Salah’s age. Despite his impressive production at 32 and highly marketable name that makes players like him essentially free spins for big clubs, the drastic change in scenery may be an impediment for a break-up of this sort.
“If he leaves, I don’t know where he would go to be honest. I know there were a few links with Paris Saint-Germain but I don’t know whether they’d go down that route with his age. I just don’t see him leaving Liverpool, and I think he’ll stay there!”
Overall, Warnock sees the Salah–Liverpool relationship as mutually beneficial and with a strong-enough foundation to help it continue beyond this season.
Warnock was also asked about Darwin Nunez’s form and confessed the Uruguayan striker looks “lost” on the pitch for the Reds after another frustrating performance against Girona last night.
“It’s not gone Darwin Nunez’s way at Liverpool, has it?” he said. “He looks a little bit lost at the moment and very low on confidence. I‘m not sure whether after scoring a few goals earlier in the season that he thought he should have started more games, only for Arne Slot to change the XI, but I think it tells you a lot when the manager is playing a winger up front in Luis Diaz over him.
It only proves how hard it is to succeed as a strike/forward in the Premier League, especially with the level of competition. Earlier this year, the BetBrain team also got to speak with Emmanuel Pettit in an interview praising the Gabriel–Saliba as a world-class duo. With such an intense level of guarding him against the goal, it’s even harder for him to succeed in a club like Liverpool.
“I think once Diogo Jota comes back into the team, Nunez will go even further down the pecking order. There just seems to be a lack of calmness in front of goal and an inability to settle himself or pass the ball into the net – the composure is just not there. I think it’s going to be difficult for him to stay in and around the team at Liverpool and contribute towards the end of the season.”
The high transfer cost of Nunez proves that splashy moves are not the no deposit bonuses that every club wants to strike with every player transaction. Adaptation is harder, especially in the competitive squad pecking orders that elite clubs have.
Warnock then discussed Conor Bradley’s credentials as a potential replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold if the Englishman leaves the Reds in the summer, citing his injury record as a big barrier to overcome.
“I think Conor Bradley certainly has the ability to replace Trent Alexander-Arnold if he leaves Liverpool, but the big concern for me is his injury record. I don't know if he's robust enough to cement that right-back position down because of all the injuries he picks up.
Neither the BetBrain team nor our readers should be surprised by such a sentiment. Former Liverpool midfielder and fellow pundit Danny Murphy mentioned Bradley’s questionable viability as a Trent replacement at this point in his career. Our interview with Danny Murphy touches on Liverpool’s need for a bolstered defence.
“In terms of attributes, he 100% has the ability to do it, but from a physical aspect I have my doubts. Obviously the more you play the more robust your body gets, and it could be a case of exposing him to more football to build him up, but there’s also a danger of the opposite effect happening and his body letting him down even more.”
