(Video) Darwin Nunez went rogue with crafty 73rd-minute moment v Brighton last night | OneFootball

Darwin Nunez can certainly be frustrating at times, but he also has so many moments which make him impossible to dislike.

The Liverpool striker has endured no end of criticism from pundits in this country over his finishing ability since coming to Anfield two years ago, but his charisma on and off the pitch has endeared him to Reds supporters, along with a penchant for decisive and/or spectacular goals.

The Uruguayan came on as a substitute in our 3-2 win over Brighton in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night, and almost immediately he was up to a few tricks that LFC fans will have enjoyed seeing.

Nunez tried to dupe Enciso

With Arne Slot’s team 2-0 to the good in the 73rd minute, the Seagulls had a free kick 25 yards from goal. As Julio Enciso shaped to take it, Nunez went rogue with some cheeky trickery, subtly pointing to his left in an apparent attempt to dupe the Paraguayan into shooting to that side.

Brighton’s number 10 ignored the 25-year-old’s signal but still contrived to lash the ball straight into the Liverpool defensive wall as the set piece came to nothing.

(Photo by Alex Davidson/Getty Images)

A largely quiet cameo for Nunez

It was nothing more than a mere footnote in the overall context of the match, yet Liverpool fans will still have derived a laugh out of Nunez’s antics in the wall for Enciso’s free kick, particularly when it rebounded to the safety of the middle third of the pitch.

With Diogo Jota and Federico Chiesa injured, it seemed a surprise when Slot brought on the Uruguayan and Mo Salah with just under 20 minutes to go and the Reds at that point cruising towards victory, although two late Brighton goals ensured a slightly nervy finish to proceedings.

Our number 9 didn’t have a whole lot to do during his time on the pitch, aside from setting up one chance for Trey Nyoni, but thankfully he came through it without incurring any knocks.

When Liverpool face the Seagulls again on Saturday, hopefully Nunez will have his name in lights by adding to his goal tally for the season.

You can check out Nunez’s antics in the defensive wall below, taken from CBS Sports’ match coverage and shared via @Winamino on X: