Alan Shearer has made an early Darwin Nunez prediction as he discussed Liverpool and Manchester City’s new strikers. The former Newcastle United forward is ‘certain’.
Liverpool and Manchester City do seem to be playing the same game sometimes while everyone else does their own thing. The two clubs have dominated the Premier League over the last few years, leaving the rest of the teams in their dust.
The title came down to a single point last year, of course, but the gap from second to third was 18 points. You had the best and then the rest.
Both Liverpool and City play remarkably similar games, too. They dominate possession, use high lines and last season they each operated without traditional strikers. It does often feel that the two clubs have figured football out – or at least, where the game is going.
And so it’s particularly interesting that after all of that, both of them decided to sign traditional strikers this summer. They thrived without them last season but for whatever reason, they’ve simultaneously seen the right time for the same change.
City brought in Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool brought in Darwin Nunez from Benfica. Both teams are now much more physical up top and have clear targets in the box.
But how will they do with this change? Alan Shearer only sees good things.
Alan Shearer makes early Darwin Nunez prediction
“Two huge signings,” he told Sky Sports. “Two fantastic players. I’m certain both players will score a lot of goals in the Premier League and will make their clubs better.
“I’ve seen bits of them in the Champions League, obviously. It’s great for the Premier League that their clubs are able to attract those kinds of players and I look forward to watching them a lot next season.
“They’ve both (Liverpool and Manchester City) had success last season and when you win things you’ve got to go out and strengthen.”
We fully expect the two of them to thrive, too. In a lot of ways, the signings are a natural progression from the dominance of both Liverpool and City. They control possession so well with their respective styles that teams sit very deep – the answer to that is to add a bigger threat in the box.
The all-around games of each player suggest they’ll comfortably adapt, too. Honestly, it’s hard to see either signing going wrong.
Receive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox
