Jurgen Klopp says he thinks Darwin Nunez will be fit to play for Liverpool on Wednesday after missing today’s loss against Nottingham Forest.
The in-form striker missed Saturday’s miserable defeat at the City Ground with a hamstring injury. And speaking to beIN Sports after the game, Klopp was asked for an update on Nunez, as well as fellow absentee Thiago Alcantara.
“Thiago got a bad ear infection overnight. [He] woke up in the middle of the night, was really worried, and in the end, we sent him home,” said the Liverpool boss. “Darwin, the game came too early for him. I think he will be fine on Wednesday; I hope he will be fine on Wednesday, but today was too quick. He felt the muscle still and we have to be careful.”
Liverpool desperately, desperately missed Nunez’s explosiveness against Forest this afternoon. Without someone running the channels, the Reds one-dimensional attacks never looked like causing trouble.
Liverpool struggle without in-form Nunez
The frustration of this loss will be hard to shake off for anyone with a Liverpool connection. After back-to-back wins, fans would have expected to make that three in a row against the side at the bottom of the Premier League table.
Instead, their team served up one of the most dismal displays of the season. In a year that sees them sit in seventh place after 11 games, that’s some going.
There will be frustration around the plight of Nunez, too. The 23-year-old has been one of Liverpool’s best players in the last handful of games.
It’s simply typical of the way this season is going that he should then pick up an injury.
Even if the Uruguayan is fit to face Ajax next week, Klopp is right, Liverpool have to be very careful. They can’t afford to lose another forward having already seen Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota ruled out for months.
Without that trio this afternoon, the Reds looked desperate going forward. Mohamed Salah was back to being the anonymous player we’ve seen for much of the season. Meanwhile, Roberto Firmino struggled to get going, too.
With Harvey Elliott and Fabio Carvalho not providing enough pace and directness out wide, Liverpool played into Forest’s hands.
Nunez will help with that. But there’s no point throwing him in if it’s only going to cause him longer-term trouble. Liverpool only need a point in Amsterdam to qualify for the Champions League knockout stages. Instead of risking Nunez, maybe it’s worth battening down the hatches for a defensive display to grind out the point.
Receive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox
