Victor Munoz will arrive at Liverpool as a world champion after Spain beat Argentina in the World Cup final on Sunday.
Quite rightly, Munoz looked to be enjoying the festivities to the fullest as he lifted the trophy with his teammates in New Jersey, but after taking in the moment, the 23-year-old must now switch his focus immediately to Liverpool.
In reality, it was a disappointing tournament for Munoz, with injury initially preventing him from gaining any momentum. Though he is fit now, the former Osasuna man could not break his way into Luis de la Fuente’s team.
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Liverpool fans are still unsure exactly what to expect from Munoz having not seen him in action at all since his signing in late June.
The Spaniard is now set to embark upon a regulatory three-week break before he joins up with the Reds and can show supporters what he’s all about. But, given his playing time totalled zero in the USA, Canada and Mexico, Munoz could endear himself to fans by foregoing his holiday and linking up with his new teammates in Tennessee immediately.
Munoz should stay in the USA and join Liverpool
Obviously, this decision should be totally up to Munoz himself, and it will not reflect poorly on him if he wants to take his time off and come to Liverpool at the start of August.
However, he could earn some real brownie points from fans if he shows a willingness to get straight down to business following his World Cup triumph.
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That could be important for the winger, who, already with a hugely truncated pre-season, cannot afford to waste too much time getting to know his new club.
From an on-the-pitch point of view, it would obviously help Munoz to get in and around Liverpool training as quickly as possible as he looks to get to know Iraola and his style of play.
More than that, though, the youngster is not anything like guaranteed of a starting spot for the Reds. Coming in so late would cement him as a substitute, and that can be a hard place for a new player to get out of.
If he comes back early he could win over supporters and also, with Liverpool light on attackers, he could force his way into the starting XI and potentially stay there. This will not happen unless he makes the decision to join training early.
How likely is Munoz to join up immediately?
Although logistically it makes sense for Munoz to travel straight from New York to Tennessee and begin training with Liverpool, it currently feels unlikely to happen.
The main barrier to this is not Munoz himself, but rather Spain’s own plans. La Roja are travelling back to Madrid where they will parade their trophy through the streets.
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Clearly, though his input was very minimal, Munoz will want to be a part of this once-in-a-lifetime event.
While it would indeed be a boost to his new reputation at Liverpool to choose club over country in this of all moments, it does not look likely to happen.
Munoz could, of course, return to the US from Spain, but that would be a lot of travelling in what is supposed to be time off for him, and with Liverpool due back at the start of August, it feels much more probable that the first we see of Munoz will be at the AXA Training Centre.
While that is completely understandable, it is frustrating that the new signing will have such a short time to get to know his new club, teammates and manager before the action gets back underway in a month’s time.
Liverpool fans will take to Munoz anyway as he is fast, direct, exciting and is now a world champion. But it would have been nice just to get that extra little feather in his cap regardless.
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