Darwin Nunez came up trumps for Liverpool in their win at Brentford on Saturday, and captain Virgil van Dijk recognised the striker’s brace will help silence critics for the time being.
Nunez has had a tough time in front of goal this term, with Arne Slot using him sparingly from the start of matches. He started on the bench once more at Brentford, but entered the fray for the final half-hour as a substitute for Luis Diaz.
The former Benfica star spurned a couple of early half-chances, include one ambitious effort from the edge of the box which ended up way off target. With the clock ticking towards full-time, though, he was on hand to turn Trent Alexander-Arnold’s cross beyond Mark Flekken to break the deadlock.
A second Nunez goal followed soon after, and a far more emphatic one at that. Speaking after the win, skipper Van Dijk made his feelings very clear.
“You have to earn these things,” Van Dijk said. “As a striker you get judged on goals especially at a club like Liverpool. Today he put his mark on the game. Very important. We need everyone at their best. Today was his day.”
When asked if he thought Liverpool were at their best, the captain said: “I think so, yeah. Don’t you think so?”. Despite needing the full 90 minutes to break down their opponents, they ended the match with a whopping 37 shots.
“They [Brentford] have a very clear structure,” he continued. “You try to break a low block down and if you lose the ball sometimes you can get a counter-attack on you. They create some danger moments. They create them against any team in the league. We handled it well and could have scored more.
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Goalkeeper Alisson also praised Nunez after the victory. “”This shows his quality and how important he is for this team,” the Brazilian told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“Sometimes we didn’t win games because we cannot finish that way inside of the box, but today Darwin did really well not only with the goals but with his attitude and the way he fights for every ball. You can say he doesn’t score too much this season, but he is working hard everyday.”
Nunez now has six goals for the season, including four in the Premier League. He ended last season with 11 in the league and 18 in all competitions, but the last of those came on April 4 against Sheffield United.
The win at Brentford was a big one for Liverpool, who had drawn their previous two matches in the league. It sent them seven points clear of second-placed Arsenal ahead of the Gunners’ home match against Aston Villa in the 5.30pm kick-off.
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