The Premier League is a very demanding competition, especially if you’re a striker. Over the years, a whole host of special poachers have graced English shores from Alan Shearer to Thierry Henry to Robbie Fowler to Harry Kane to Erling Haaland, with virtually all of them sharing one thing in common.
Above all else, the successful Premier League striker is typically clinical when presented with opportunities to find the net. The classic striker who dominates England’s top flight has a ruthless edge attached to his game, with the players at the business end of the pitch expected to be deadly in the penalty box. Right now, however, Darwin Núñez conflicts with that profile. Liverpool signed him for a hefty transfer fee from Benfica last summer, and he arrived as a 22-year-old talent with bags of potential. But since, he’s painted himself as an inconsistent finisher who needs a number of chances in order to find the net.
The South American has frustrated many supporters as a consequence of his wasteful streak in front of goal. His finishing troubles can be captured using the numbers, as since his debut for the Reds, he’s accumulated 162 efforts on goal in the Premier League, Champions League and Europa League with those shots worth roughly 25.6 expected goals, excluding penalties.
In actual reality, however, Núñez has scored just 18 times, which equates to an underperformance against the average of around 7.6 goals. In simple terms, if he had converted his shots into goals at a perfectly normal level, he would have found the net around eight times more than his actual total. For context, Haaland has actually overperformed by 7.1 goals over the same period for Manchester City. Kane has overperformed by 12.7 goals for Tottenham Hotspur and Bayern Munich, and Mohamed Salah — who is perhaps more of a wide forward than a true striker — has overperformed by 3.4 goals.
Núñez has wasted a lot of his chances to score, which could arguably mean Jürgen Klopp has a dilemma over whether to make him first-choice. But it is important to remember just how much he’s offering as a whole. The Uruguayan international is a nuisance for opposition defenses, and he proved that once again on Wednesday night.
The Reds number nine started on the bench against Sheffield United, with Cody Gakpo presented with an opportunity from the off. Jürgen Klopp’s men held a 1-0 lead after an hour, which is when Núñez was introduced as a secret weapon of sorts, with Salah and Luis Díaz leaving the field. For the last half an hour of the contest, he was a menace for the Blades to manage. Núñez threatened in behind on a regular basis, engaged in physical battles with his opponents, won a whole host of aerial duels, and generally offered more than any of his offensive peers in a very short space of time.
Indeed, he almost scored shortly after his introduction after being found by Trent Alexander-Arnold. Núñez was through on goal but his effort was saved by Wes Foderingham, which further added to the narrative attached to his name given his growing reputation for being wasteful when it matters.
However, in the final minutes of the clash, Núñez won a tackle and proceeded to assist Dominik Szoboszlai with a pass toward the back post seconds later, allowing the Hungarian captain to find the net and deliver a comfortable 2-0 win. The Reds striker didn’t score, but he was as involved as anybody. His short appearance effectively summed up his nature. Even when he doesn’t seem to play well, he is a naturally dangerous and busy player for opponents to worry about. Núñez is physical, aggressive and energetic, and he’s a magnet for attracting chances having averaged 4.9 shots per 90 minutes in the Premier League so far this term.
Nobody shoots more often than him but because he isn’t yet converting those attempts into goals as often as Shearer, Haaland, Henry or Kane, he is being criticized. The disapproval is understandable at times, but his contribution as a whole to Liverpool’s attack cannot be overlooked. When he is on the pitch, things happen.
Núñez is almost busting a myth attached to strikers in England. He should be scoring more goals — that much is undeniable — but contrary to popular belief, number nines can play well without finding the net.
