Arne Slot makes Darwin Nunez admission amid Liverpool exit talk

Liverpool manager Arne Slot has admitted he has struggled to find a way to maximise striker Darwin Nunez amid increasing speculation about his future at Anfield.

An £85m signing in the summer of 2022, Nunez has struggled to hold down a permanent role in Slot's lineup, starting just seven times in the Premier League this season and chipping in with four goals in 26 appearances across all competitions.

Reports have linked Nunez with a move away from Liverpool, with Al Hilal and even Manchester United tipped to test the Reds' resolve, and Slot has now confessed that the 25-year-old is not a natural fit for his preferred style of play.

"Darwin is a striker we have to use in a certain way and we were not able yet to bring the best out of him this season," Slot said.

"Against Accrington Stanley again you saw he has a lot of pace but, unfortunately for him, most teams sit back a lot against us. If you look back at the goals he scored for us, I remember the one against [Aston] Villa when he went around the goalkeeper on a fast break, that is his main strength.

"He has other qualities as well, but we are still working on getting him in the best possible positions against a low block. That involves the right timings, the right crosses, the right position to start from and making the right run."

Slot did, however, defend Nunez's underwhelming return in front of goal by arguing that teams defend in greater numbers against Liverpool than against other opponents.

"The way teams defend our No.9 is something you have to give them credit for," Slot said. "It's never: 'Here Darwin, you can score'. Every time we put in a cross I see a defender all over him. I see it, referees unfortunately don't.

"For us, in general, it's more difficult to score against a team like [Nottingham] Forest because every time we had a chance they had six, seven, eight, nine or ten players standing in the 18-yard box.

"And the one time [Chris] Wood had a chance he was there almost on his own. We weren't really close to the ball. They only had one chance, we had 15. But with the 15 we had there was always someone close to the ball or all over one of our players. Darwin will score his goals. He already did and he will again."

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