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Darwin Nunez averaging a goal or assist every 50 minutes this season

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Darwin Nunez averaging a goal or assist every 50 minutes this season
Darwin Nunez averaging a goal or assist every 50 minutes this season

DARWIN NUNEZ (£4.2m) can be a frustrating figure at times.

For all his positive attributes, he has a curious habit of squandering gilt-edged chances more often than Jurgen Klopp would like.

However, it would be clanging mistake to write-off the Uruguayan striker simply because he's not the most efficient finisher around.


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Nunez has impressed at the start of this season eiqdiqexidddprw
Nunez has impressed at the start of this seasonCredit: Dream Team

Physically imposing, Nunez has great instincts and his movement is genuinely world-class.

Jurgen Klopp's approach with Robert Lewandowski bodes well for Darwin NunezJurgen Klopp's approach with Robert Lewandowski bodes well for Darwin Nunez

He also has a dogged persistence and competitive edge typical of many other South American players.

While he may miss more than his fair share of chances, Nunez's great strength is his ability to generate opportunity after opportunity for himself.

A forward who converts one chance out of four over the course of a game is better than a striker who scores every other shot if the latter is only in the right place and the right time once every other game.

Simply put, missing chances isn't much of an issue if the goal involvements are flowing freely.

There's no better example of this than Erling Haaland (£7.5m).

Top of the Premier League food chain
Top of the Premier League food chainCredit: Getty

Manchester City's No9 missed more big chances (as defined by Opta) than any other player last season - he also broke the record for most goals in a Premier League campaign.

The Norwegian poacher has missed more big chances than any other player so far this season too - but again, he's top scorer.

Reverting to Nunez, while he may not be the most clinical finisher around in terms of chance conversion, he's mightily efficient with his time.

The 24-year-old averages a goal or assist every 50 minutes in Dream Team this season!

Having only played the full 90 minutes in two of his 13 appearances this term, Nunez has scored six goals and registered seven assists.

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This has translated to 82 points in total, putting him sixth among assets in his position, two points behind Son Heung-min (£4.8m).

In fine form
In fine formCredit: PA

Nunez has been particularly productive of late, pocketing 29 points from three outings since the start of Gameweek 9.

In fact, the aforementioned Haaland is the only striker who has produced more points across their last three games.

Looking ahead, Liverpool's fixtures look rather favourable for the rest of November.

The Reds travel to Bournemouth this evening in the Carabao Cup before a trip to Luton this weekend.

They then to travel to Toulouse (who they recently beat 5-1) before welcoming Brentford to Anfield just prior to the international break.

A visit to the Etihad on the 25th represents a tough test but a home fixture against LASK completes a month ripe with potential for Liverpool assets.

Nunez currently features in 10.1% of teams.


Nick Elliott

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