Liverpool are facing another injury worry with star striker Darwin Nunez who was substituted off the pitch during an international fixture for Uruguay on Tuesday after suffering muscle difficulties.
Jurgen Klopp will be preparing for the upcoming Premier League clash away from home against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the early kick-off on Saturday, and will have a number of injury concerns to take into consideration.
The German coach will be hoping that the duration of the international break will have given time for both Ibrahima Konate and Trent Alexander-Arnold to recover and return to action when the Reds travel to the Molineux this weekend, but it remains to be seen whether either will be ready to start.
Thiago Alcantara was touted to return following the international break, however, he remains, at present, unlikely to make a full recovery in time for the resumption of Premier League football, whilst Virgil van Dijk will also be absent due to his extended punishment for his altercation with the referee during the victory over Newcastle United.
Now Klopp may have another first-team regular to worry about with Nunez as Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa delivered a concerning update on the goal machine’s current state after being taken off against Ecuador.
Speaking to ESPN, Bielsa revealed:
“Darwin came out because he didn’t arrive well for the match, he had muscular difficulties and that limited his mobility.”
“I thought it was a good idea to replace him because he couldn’t take on the rhythm of the game when we had to press or attack. He made a great effort, but you could see that he wasn’t at his best.”
Our thoughts on Darwin Nunez’s fitness worry…
The 24-year-old has had an explosive start to his Premier League campaign, despite finding himself starting on the bench for the majority of the four opening fixtures for Liverpool.
His cameo against Newcastle at St James’ Park last month proved how much of a game-changer he can really be when given the opportunity and freedom to express himself in the final third – scoring two goals to deliver his 10-men team the important three points away from home.
Having said that, whilst it is not ideal that Nunez is suffering some kind of muscle strain, it wouldn’t be a complete nightmare for Klopp, as the manager is stacked with attacking options who can replace the Uruguayan’s contributions.
Cody Gakpo, Diogo Jota, Luis Diaz, Mohamed Salah and youngster Ben Doak are all options for the Liverpool boss to consider when putting together his attacking threat to trouble Gary O’Neil’s side this weekend, so allowing Nunez to get in some recovery time to ease those muscle difficulties would be wise.
With that being said, there is no doubt that Liverpool will miss Nunez’s chaotic presence on the pitch at Molineux, but there is no reason why his potential absence should impact the levels of quality that the side can provide in front of goal when the Reds return to action on Saturday.
