Rating Nunez's 1st Year at LFC
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Based on my expectation - 5/10.
Based on what the season offered and all the speed bumps - 7.5/10
Hoping there's a huge bounce next year ... not sure if I would be on it though (if I was a betting man)
Based on what the season offered and all the speed bumps - 7.5/10
Hoping there's a huge bounce next year ... not sure if I would be on it though (if I was a betting man)
6/10 - at best.
Disappointing, but not a total disaster.
Improves or should be fucked off next summer.
Probably not who we should have spaffed £65m+ on last summer.
We’re not ready to play consistently without a False 9 and Nunez is 3rd in line to play on the left.
Disappointing, but not a total disaster.
Improves or should be fucked off next summer.
Probably not who we should have spaffed £65m+ on last summer.
We’re not ready to play consistently without a False 9 and Nunez is 3rd in line to play on the left.
Yeah, that's more or less my view too. If we'd have spent that money on a midfielder instead, we might have made the CL.
I really want to like him but more often than not it seems like he has to concentrate really hard to trap the ball and play a pass to a team-mate. That's not good enough for 65M.
Ifs and buts.
If we spent that money on a midfielder instead our front 3 until Jan would've been Carvalho - Firmino - Salah.
My worry with the idea of selling him is that you could easily see him going to a club like Villa or Brighton, suddenly clicking and being phenomenal. Hopefully the confidence click happens while he's with us.
To answer the question: 6/10
To answer the question: 6/10
Yeah we would have dropped points in the first half of the season I think without him, so I dont think signing 1 mid would have cured all our ills.
I'd rate him a 6/10 for this year. I'm hopeful he'll progress, but I do think he'll play a LWF this year, and cut in a lot, rotated to a 9 when gakpo needs a break or we're chasing a game
I'd rate him a 6/10 for this year. I'm hopeful he'll progress, but I do think he'll play a LWF this year, and cut in a lot, rotated to a 9 when gakpo needs a break or we're chasing a game
Are we doing this out of ten? Or...
In all seriousness. I'd give it a 6/10
He hasn't disappointed. But hasn't aced it either.
This will be a make or break year for him. He needs to learn English to be able to communicate more effectively.
Typically he's had that second season bounce wherever he's been. So my expectations kick in now.
In all seriousness. I'd give it a 6/10
He hasn't disappointed. But hasn't aced it either.
This will be a make or break year for him. He needs to learn English to be able to communicate more effectively.
Typically he's had that second season bounce wherever he's been. So my expectations kick in now.
That front line with a better midfield would've been better than the shit midfield we had in the first half of the season with Nunez in the front line.
Currently, I'd score the signing a 3/10.
He doesn't really fit in at LWF or at false 9, so I'm not sure what the plan was when we spiffed so much money on him. I always thought we were shifting to a 4-2-3-1, but we never really did and signed Gakpo, who is better suited, half the price, and keeps Nunez out the side. There's obviously room for this score to improve, but right now our club record signing is a mere rotation option, and that's not good enough. The fact Klopp also publically called out his slowness at learning English also gives me concern.
The performance was 6/10. Not disastrous. Moments of magic and quality. His physique, acceleration and speed are breathtaking. His positioning and ability to draw chances are at a really high level. Technically he's poor and it's hard to see that ever suddenly getting better. I fear they'll always be an element of Donkey about him. If he's to become top-class for us, we need a system that matches his strengths. Unless that happens, he will always feel more like a wild card than an intrinsic part of this side. Right now I think Klopp feels Nunez isn't offering enough to warrant the upheaval, and few can blame him.
There's plenty of time yet, of course, and let's not forget Klopp identified and polished Lewa as the deadliest striker in the modern game, so I'm still in the trust-the-process phase. There are some legitimate concerns and gripes, though.
He doesn't really fit in at LWF or at false 9, so I'm not sure what the plan was when we spiffed so much money on him. I always thought we were shifting to a 4-2-3-1, but we never really did and signed Gakpo, who is better suited, half the price, and keeps Nunez out the side. There's obviously room for this score to improve, but right now our club record signing is a mere rotation option, and that's not good enough. The fact Klopp also publically called out his slowness at learning English also gives me concern.
The performance was 6/10. Not disastrous. Moments of magic and quality. His physique, acceleration and speed are breathtaking. His positioning and ability to draw chances are at a really high level. Technically he's poor and it's hard to see that ever suddenly getting better. I fear they'll always be an element of Donkey about him. If he's to become top-class for us, we need a system that matches his strengths. Unless that happens, he will always feel more like a wild card than an intrinsic part of this side. Right now I think Klopp feels Nunez isn't offering enough to warrant the upheaval, and few can blame him.
There's plenty of time yet, of course, and let's not forget Klopp identified and polished Lewa as the deadliest striker in the modern game, so I'm still in the trust-the-process phase. There are some legitimate concerns and gripes, though.
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Except you don't know that. None of us do.
Facts are we had 9 midfielders and 5 forwards this time last year (& 2 of those forward players were out for 5-6 months), no midfielders departed last summer....we had 3 forwards who did, money had to go towards at least another forward....blame the owners for not investing more.
Perhaps I should have prefaced it with "in my opinion" or something to that effect so that you didn't feel the need to confirm that we cannot indeed know for sure whether it'd have been better.
Agree with @Squiggles
Cons:
Awful first touch
Bad decision making
Offside
Doesn't understand his role in the team
Hasn't bothered to learn English
Pros
Quick
Has a decent leap, and is probably capable of getting more headed goals with better/more crossing
Has a decent shot sometimes (although sometimes it's wild)
5/10 for me. I can't see his first touch improving much. I don't think he's very good on the left side as his dribbling is unrefined. A better midfield might be able to play the ball to him earlier if he's up front, but that will be easier against teams that play a high line.
Spending our entire summer transfer budget on a player to be 5th choice is an absolute disaster for any team bar Newcastle/City/Chelsea
Cons:
Awful first touch
Bad decision making
Offside
Doesn't understand his role in the team
Hasn't bothered to learn English
Pros
Quick
Has a decent leap, and is probably capable of getting more headed goals with better/more crossing
Has a decent shot sometimes (although sometimes it's wild)
5/10 for me. I can't see his first touch improving much. I don't think he's very good on the left side as his dribbling is unrefined. A better midfield might be able to play the ball to him earlier if he's up front, but that will be easier against teams that play a high line.
Spending our entire summer transfer budget on a player to be 5th choice is an absolute disaster for any team bar Newcastle/City/Chelsea
6 out of 10.
But I am skeptical now, as it seems we had no real plan with the purchase, and now with Gakpo as the false nine, where is his best position?
Not his fault.
He also needs a brain transplant.
Also not his fault.
He cost a lot, so expectations are higher.
Also not his fault.
He should learn english though, the tit.
But I am skeptical now, as it seems we had no real plan with the purchase, and now with Gakpo as the false nine, where is his best position?
Not his fault.
He also needs a brain transplant.
Also not his fault.
He cost a lot, so expectations are higher.
Also not his fault.
He should learn english though, the tit.
Yes, perhaps. Otherwise the post can be misconstrued as being ignorant.
Or just use the word "could've" instead of "would've".
@King Binny - Interested to hear what your thoughts on his season has gone.
This thread's gonna be a corker to look back on this time next year, pin this 1 up boys and enjoy the ride.
This thread's gonna be a corker to look back on this time next year, pin this 1 up boys and enjoy the ride.
All in all a big big let down.
4/10
4/10
Harsh to rate the lad but I guess I have to say I've been disappointed. 6/10
Then we’ll see what - an even shitter midfield and Trent back to being a RB?
And what did Diaz do to get dropped for Donkey brain.
Id be wanting more from Nunez if I was going to change the entire dynamic of the team just for him.
Buying him was as much to blame for last season’s debacle as not buying a midfielder.
You'll see a free flowing attacking Liverpool side again with pace and power bullying and scaring defences, things fans actually pay good hard earned money to see.
We won all there was to win with Trent playing RB btw, like I said with midfielders who offer protection and can actually tackle and run.....we'll be fine. Fab/Hendo out.....AlexiMac/Thuram/Grav in.
Flip of a coin between Diaz and Jota on the left, Nunez was actually fit all season unlike those 2 and contributed as many goals as the 2 of them combined but carry on using the price tag and the fact he didn't score Haaland numbers against him and calling him donkey brain, well done.
He was bought to play one system, he never did.
We then played him in 3-4 different systems and positions, and perhaps only one of these played to his strengths, and I don't think any of them was what he was purchased to do. He had a period of developing some sort of understanding, and looking our most threatening player, but that period coincided with Salah not being in as useful a position, and looking horrible closer to the wing. Gakpo coming in fixed our attack, fixed Salah in a more useful position, but left Nunez on the outs, with a left side that is far more defensive, and thus suited to Luis Diaz, who by the way, comes under little criticism.
And just on that point since people have brought up Diaz as though he's undroppable. Diaz and Nunez are on very similar amounts of games played. Diaz hit the ground running and was considered to be a massive success, in a team that was actually functional, but needed some fresh legs. Nunez went into a horrible dysfunctional team and is widely considered to be somewhere between a donkey, or the jury is out. Notably, the 6/10 Nunez is easily the more productive attacking player. Neither looks to replace Mane's contributions, but I can easily see Nunez scoring better than 1/2 games, whereas I don't see that out of Diaz at all, and while Diaz looks tidier on the dribble, he holds the ball too much. Robertson has never figured out how to play off him.
Nunez is not going to be a very adaptable player, but with any credible midfield, there's a chance that in certain setups he can do more of what he's good at. The thing is, he DOES have to do more of that, and I'm not convinced we have that setup, nor will I have any clue what it is till we finish addressing our midfield. Nunez has to finish more, simply, and he needs to be getting lots more chances, as the last era's forwards all did. Lastly, he looked most effective as a left sided forward, but I think we can't play trent inverted if he's going to be there, and, we can't play that setup without gakpo or with salah wide, because Salah has proven he can't play that wide role.
His inclusion next season makes more sense in two scenarios. One, where we are counterattacking, or play a team with a very high line. Two, where we dominate possession so much we can play gakpo in midfield, or we fix our midfield to the extent that we can have an AM rather than a false 9, one that actually knows what they are doing.
I'd give him a 6 for performances, and the purchase a 3 given how the season turned out. He's a project player who could really be devastating, but is that what you need in a transition? He should have cost about 30-40 million less. I think Gakpo is our best attacking purchase for a while.
We then played him in 3-4 different systems and positions, and perhaps only one of these played to his strengths, and I don't think any of them was what he was purchased to do. He had a period of developing some sort of understanding, and looking our most threatening player, but that period coincided with Salah not being in as useful a position, and looking horrible closer to the wing. Gakpo coming in fixed our attack, fixed Salah in a more useful position, but left Nunez on the outs, with a left side that is far more defensive, and thus suited to Luis Diaz, who by the way, comes under little criticism.
And just on that point since people have brought up Diaz as though he's undroppable. Diaz and Nunez are on very similar amounts of games played. Diaz hit the ground running and was considered to be a massive success, in a team that was actually functional, but needed some fresh legs. Nunez went into a horrible dysfunctional team and is widely considered to be somewhere between a donkey, or the jury is out. Notably, the 6/10 Nunez is easily the more productive attacking player. Neither looks to replace Mane's contributions, but I can easily see Nunez scoring better than 1/2 games, whereas I don't see that out of Diaz at all, and while Diaz looks tidier on the dribble, he holds the ball too much. Robertson has never figured out how to play off him.
Nunez is not going to be a very adaptable player, but with any credible midfield, there's a chance that in certain setups he can do more of what he's good at. The thing is, he DOES have to do more of that, and I'm not convinced we have that setup, nor will I have any clue what it is till we finish addressing our midfield. Nunez has to finish more, simply, and he needs to be getting lots more chances, as the last era's forwards all did. Lastly, he looked most effective as a left sided forward, but I think we can't play trent inverted if he's going to be there, and, we can't play that setup without gakpo or with salah wide, because Salah has proven he can't play that wide role.
His inclusion next season makes more sense in two scenarios. One, where we are counterattacking, or play a team with a very high line. Two, where we dominate possession so much we can play gakpo in midfield, or we fix our midfield to the extent that we can have an AM rather than a false 9, one that actually knows what they are doing.
I'd give him a 6 for performances, and the purchase a 3 given how the season turned out. He's a project player who could really be devastating, but is that what you need in a transition? He should have cost about 30-40 million less. I think Gakpo is our best attacking purchase for a while.
Sensational post
One of the more galling things for me was that when we started to get a tune out of trent, it was when Nunez was dropped, or limited in appearances. I've no doubt that if trent continues how he finishes, and nunez gets more minutes wide left or as the 9.... He'll look a different beast
I'll rate him a 6.5/10.
Quite a couple of mitigating factors
- Burden and pressure that comes with his heavy price tag
- Lots of team mates under performing + team (esp. midfield) malfunctioning
- Revamped offence
- Different role vs. when at Benfica
(Players who featured at least 1500 mins last season)
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