McAteer: Liverpool player has come on leaps and bounds in pre-season, after Leipzig win

Jason McAteer has told LFCTV that Darwin Nunez has already come on leaps and bounds during pre-season at Liverpool, after scoring four goals in a wonderful second-half display against RB Leipzig on Thursday night.

Nunez, 23, came on at half-time against Leipzig and took the game by the scruff of the neck. He starred, earning a 10 in our player ratings. In just five minutes, the Uruguay international had two goals, and finished with four.

Opening the scoring after Luis Diaz won a penalty, Nunez got his second with a lovely finish after Liverpool won the ball back high up the pitch. A third was a neat finish from a Harvey Elliott cross, before four late on.

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It comes after initially struggling against Manchester United, before improving in the clash with Crystal Palace. But against Leipzig, Nunez gave fans a taste of why he has been signed. McAteer compared him to Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

“For a striker he needs goals,” McAteer said, as a pundit post-match on LFCTV. “He’s not a defender, a midfielder. They need goals. Against Manchester United, he ran around – burnt all the oxygen inside the two minutes.

“He never recovered. He was better against Palace. But the goals were coming and tonight, he was excellent. He is an out-and-out striker. I see shades of [Zlatan] Ibrahimovic in him, shades of [Ian] Rushy.”

McAteer: Nunez come on leaps and bounds during Liverpool pre-season

What a display from Nunez. The Uruguayan entered the fray with Liverpool only boasting a slender 1-0 lead thanks to Mo Salah’s early opener. But wow, what a performance, and what an instant impact on Thursday night.

His predatory instinct was excellent. But it was also his running off the ball, his link-up play. Nunez looked much more in control and playing with more freedom. It could have been five, but for a brilliant save from a header.

Photo by RONNY HARTMANN/AFP via Getty Images
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