Within the span of thirteen minutes, Darwin Núñez scored two goals against Newcastle to win Liverpool the game in an unlikely comeback. On Sunday, August 27th, Núñez etched his name into Liverpool history, scoring two goals in thirteen minutes off the bench to beat a stunned Newcastle two-to-one. This game has put the international soccer scene on notice, showing that Núñez might finally live up to the publicity surrounding his name.
The summer of 2022 was big for Núñez, earning a contract that was worth up to £85 million euros after transferring from Benfica, a club in Portugal where he first garnered attention from big teams like Liverpool. Expectations were high for Núñez the minute he touched down in Liverpool, and in his first season with the Reds, he mostly disappointed. He constantly showed flashes of greatness but couldn’t seem to make good decisions or put the ball in the net.
However, this changed in the recent Liverpool match against Newcastle. Liverpool was falling behind in the first half of the game. In the 25th minute, Newcastle’s Anthony Gordon scored the first goal of the game, making it one-to-zero. Then, in only the 28th minute, Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk received a red card, reducing the reds to only ten men on the field. The rest of the game from that point was proportionate play from either team, with no team being able to score since Newcastle’s goal from Gordon. So when the time came for the twenty-four-year-old to come on the pitch for a spark, there wasn’t much hope that he would turn the game around.
Within five minutes, Darwin scored his first goal of the game off a costly mistake from Newcastle defender Botman. However, this performance didn’t come without mistakes, because Núñez received a yellow card for kicking away the ball to further delay Newcastle from taking a free kick. Only eight minutes after getting booked, he redeemed himself and his team with yet another goal in the 93rd minute, securing the win for the Reds.
Jürgen Klopp, the manager of Liverpool, discussed Núñez’s performance, and he said that “[Núñez] was obviously fired up from not starting. It’s clear he’s not happy. It’s early in the season; we need to find stability and results, but he will play; there’s no doubt about that.”
“I feel very happy for the team to be able to help them,” a smiling Núñez told reporters (with the help of his translator Allison Becker, Liverpool’s goalkeeper).
After this performance, I think it’s safe to say Liverpool will be looking towards Darwin Núñez for more top-class performances in the future. I personally can’t wait to see what he does next, and I know the rest of the soccer world can’t either.
