Arne Slot has been somewhat stringent with his team selections this season, unleashing a tried-and-tested core to his Liverpool side that has, in fairness, reaped plenty of reward.
It’s meant that some of the squad – Joe Gomez, Harvey Elliott, Wataru Endo and Federico Chiesa, for example – have been left fighting for regular minutes as Liverpool move toward the Premier League title, prepare for this month’s Carabao Cup final clash against Newcastle United and gear up for the Champions League knockout phase.
However, there’s another man who has struggled to earn regular starting minutes, and since he’s into his third season at Anfield carrying the badge of club-record signing, it’s inexcusable that Darwin Nunez is flattering to deceive.
The end of the road for Nunez
Nunez cost Liverpool an initial £64m fee to bring in from SL Benfica in July 2022, with club- and individual-related bonuses taking that figure to a whopping £85m.
Nunez is into his third season but has failed to convince Slot of his quality, limited to only seven starts in the Premier League, scoring six times across 36 matches in total.
As per Sofascore, he’s missed 51 big chances since first arriving in the Premier League, scoring 24 goals in that timeframe. That’s not good enough and were Mohamed Salah not so breathtakingly potent in the final third, Nunez’s struggles may have been felt more keenly.
Curiously though, Nunez’s finishing has statistically been at its best this year, with four goals scored and only four big chances missed in England’s top flight.
Even though he’s not missing so many chances this season, Nunez’s actual effectiveness, his chaotic element, has also diminished, and he offers little to a team fighting for multiple prizes.
Saudi Arabian outfit Al-Nassr were interested in the Uruguay international in January but Liverpool ultimately kept him on the books, wary of selling themselves short with titles on the line.
However, as Fabrizio Romano states above, that could change this summer as Slot looks to put his own external stamp on the squad. Nunez might be off.
And he may not be the only one.
FSG must also sell this Liverpool star
Jurgen Klopp’s summer rebuild in 2023 set Liverpool up for the success they are currently enjoying.
Three transfer windows have passed with minimal first-team investment. Now it is time for the Reds to bolster Slot’s squad and ensure many seasons of challenging for the biggest honours can be enjoyed.
Wage Burners
With sporting director Richard Hughes likely to have compiled a list of left-backs following reports Liverpool are preparing to sign in that area, Kostas Tsimikas could be approaching the final stage of his Liverpool career.
Andy Robertson is the first choice at the club, has been at Liverpool for almost eight years. The Scotsman, 30, hasn’t been at his best this season but could still play an important role over the next few years – he just needs some younger competition to jockey with before finally handing over the baton.
Well, Liverpool are interested in high-flying Bournemouth star Milos Kerkez, among others, and this could see Tsimikas’ time come to an end, for the Reds don’t need three left-sided full-backs.
In 2020, Tsimikas joined Liverpool from Olympiakos in a deal worth £12m and he has since played 110 fixtures, racking up 18 assists along the way. As you can see below, though, he’s never managed to nail down a starting berth in the Premier League.
24/25
13 (4)
0
1
23/24
13 (8)
0
3
22/23
20 (9)
0
4
21/22
13 (9)
0
2
20/21
2 (0)
0
0
Even with Robertson flattering to deceive this season, Tsimikas hasn’t convinced his new boss. As per Sofascore, the 28-year-old’s enjoying one of his strongest defensive campaigns, winning 68% of his duels across 13 matches, although he only averages 0.2 dribbles and 1.4 ball recoveries per game.
Frankly, the defender has his limitations; in a way, he is a lesser version of prime Robertson, something that has worked well in maintaining fluency across the years, but now it’s time for change.
Tsimikas is a popular member of the Liverpool squad, committed and effective going forward, providing a delightful cross that made him the architect for some big moments – namely whipping in the last-gasp corner that Virgil van Dijk converted to lift last season’s Carabao Cup trophy against the odds.
However, every dog has his day and if Liverpool are to invest in a new left-back this summer, then it may be Tsimikas who is deemed expendable.
After all, the Greece international takes home a healthy pay packet indeed at £75k-per-week, meaning he earns more than Red superstars such as Ibrahima Konate (£70k-per-week) and Luis Diaz (£55k-per-week) both of whom are in need of fresh deals.
Both Konate and Diaz are renowned as being in the top bracket worldwide for their respective positions, which makes an interesting point on FSG’s need to tie such players down.
Liverpool must consider their options, for sure, but with a new left-back among the priority positions for Slot and co, Tsimikas may well be readying himself to drape the curtain on an Anfield journey he can look back on with pride, but one whose time has come.
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