Former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson believes Jurgen Klopp made the decision to sign Darwin Nunez for Liverpool after a certain fixture.
Nunez arrived at the club from Benfica earlier this summer in a deal reportedly worth up to £85 million with potential add-ons.
The Uruguayan netted 34 times in 41 appearances for the Portuguese giants last season and is expected to fill the void left by the departing Sadio Mane, who left Anfield for Bayern Munich in this window.
Arriving with hefty expectations, the 22-year-old has struggled to make an impact thus far in the Reds’ pre-season games.
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Last week against Manchester United in Bangkok he missed a gilt-edged opportunity, while he managed just half an hour after coming on at half-time against Crystal Palace in Singapore on Friday.
However, his talent is certainly there and it was on show for everyone at Liverpool in last season’s Champions League Quarter-Final tie between the Merseyside club and Benfica.
Despite Liverpool winning the tie convincingly, Nunez scored in both legs and Robinson believes this fixture is what convinced Klopp to splash out on the starlet.
Speaking to Football Insider, he said: “I don’t think you can take Klopp’s comments without a pinch of salt."
"The club will have done their due diligence on players. There is so much homework and background checks."
“In two games, Klopp will have been able to see there is a player there."
"I think it would have been a case of Klopp seeing the two games and getting his staff to look into the possibility of a deal."
“I’m sure those two games were a huge part of the reason but it will not be the only reason they signed him, that’s for sure.
“It is clever to listen to your players if you’re a manager. They are very knowledgeable."
"If a player comes off the pitch and says, ‘Gaffer, you have to look at him. He is top class you would be silly not to.’”
After spending a week in South East Asia, Liverpool travel back to Europe to face German outfit RB Leipzig on Thursday.
Nunez will be looking to get off the mark for his new club.
Topics: Liverpool, Liverpool Transfer News & Rumours, Darwin Nunez
Alfie Culshaw