Darwin Nunez: RB Leipzig’s tweet to Liverpool about £85m striker goes viral | OneFootball

Darwin Nunez silenced his doubters by scoring four goals in Liverpool’s 5-0 pre-season friendly victory over RB Leipzig on Thursday.

The 23-year-old striker, who cost the Reds a club-record £85 million last month, had been mocked by rival fans on social media following his performances against Manchester United, Crystal Palace and even in training sessions.

Despite the fact he’s still settling into a new team and is yet to make his competitive debut for his new employers, some were already writing Nunez off as an expensive flop. Madness, eh?

But those same people were forced to re-evaluate their premature opinions as the Uruguayan striker produced a Man of the Match performance after replacing Roberto Firmino at half-time.

Nunez netted his first goal of the night from the penalty spot, three minutes after entering the fray.

By the 68th minute he’d completed his hat-trick, and the South American added further gloss to the scoreline by netting a fourth goal in the closing stages.

What did Jurgen Klopp say about Darwin Nunez’s performance?

“The box of Pandora was opened for Darwin and then of course it was the perfect night for him,’ Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said, per Metro, after full-time.

“We always think if you pay a lot of money then the players feel no pressure but they are completely normal human beings!

“And then if the first touch isn’t perfect and this generation of player read social media, which is really not smart. But they do.

“All of a sudden you get in a rush. But tonight is the best way to stop all of these discussions.

“He’s a different striker to what we already have – but he’s a really good one.”

What did RB Leipzig say about Darwin Nunez on Twitter?

Liverpool posted a photo of Nunez with the match ball, alongside the caption: “It’s not been a bad night has it, @Dawinn99?”

RB Leipzig’s direct response to Liverpool’s tweet has subsequently gone viral: “When’s the rematch without @Darwinn99? That guy is a beast.”

While it was only a pre-season friendly, it’s still rare for one top club to tweet another about a specific player following a match.

RB Leipzig finished fourth in the Bundesliga last season, reached the Europa League semi-finals and won the German Cup – they’re no minnows.

Perhaps they felt a little sorry for Nunez following the recent social media backlash and wanted to boost his spirits, who knows.

Darwin Nunez could make competitive Liverpool debut v Man City

Regardless, Nunez will continue to get his head down and work hard ahead of the 2022-23 season.

Liverpool have one more pre-season friendly left to play, against Salzburg on July 27, before taking on Manchester City in the Community Shield three days later.