Jurgen Klopp has revealed a “long talk” between him and Darwin Núñez ahead of Rangers’ visit, with the Liverpool manager “completely calm”.
Ahead of the Champions League clash with Rangers on Tuesday night, a lot of attention has been turned on Nunez after a third consecutive start off the bench.
The £85m signing has struggled to meet the price in the same emphatic way as his Man City counterpart Erling Haaland, with the Norwegian’s 17 goals in 11 games so far setting a ridiculous benchmark.
But despite growing concern among supporters, Klopp insists he is “completely calm” about the situation with his No. 27, who he believes is “not starting to worry”.
“Of course he is still adapting, as players always adapt,” he told reporters on Monday.
“Players, new players, come in, everyone is talking about them and they want them to shine right away. That happens from time to time and sometimes it doesn’t.
“Only yesterday we had a long talk – with Pep Lijnders, because my Spanish or Portuguese is still not better – and we told him ‘we are completely calm’.
“So it’s very important in our situation right now [that he is] he doesn’t start to worry, and he doesn’t seem like he’s worried or anything.
“Why didn’t this game start [against Brighton]? He came from international [duty] and he had a [problem] in the hamstring.
“When you get this information from the medical department, it gives you kind of minutes, how long is he allowed to play.
“You don’t start anybody who is allowed to play 20 minutes or 15. That’s the reason.
“But I know that again it’s this type of discussion, that we open up a little bit for the outside world.
“Of course the three-game suspension didn’t help him settle down, that’s for sure. But that’s pretty much it.
“The team is not flying, that doesn’t make it any easier for a striker, and even less so for a striker.
“We create chances, but it’s not like everything fits and we put in a player and finish off our situations.
“That is not our situation right now, as much as I wish it was. That is all.”
Nunez could make his first start since September 3 when Liverpool take on Rangers this week, although Klopp also has Roberto Firmino and Diogo Jota as options up front.
