Reports from Spain have sensationally claimed that Liverpool were prepared to offload one of their more recent signings in order to land a mooted transfer target over the summer.
According to Mundo Deportivo, the Reds were among numerous clubs to have shown an interest in signing Joao Felix from Atletico Madrid, so much so that they were apparently willing to offer Darwin Nunez to the LaLiga side in exchange.
However, the 23-year-old ultimately got his wish of a move to Barcelona, albeit only on loan, having been rewarded for his patience in holding out for the Spanish champions and rejecting all other offers.
It’s hard to imagine that, having spent an initial £64m to sign Nunez as recently as June 2022 (BBC Sport), Liverpool would’ve sacrificed him so readily, so we’d take this report with a pinch of salt.
Thankfully, the Uruguayan remains a Reds player, one who’s begun the season looking like a striker who’ll easily surpass his tally of 15 goals from the 2022/23 campaign (Transfermarkt), his first at Anfield.
Were it not for his two late strikes at Newcastle last month, we’d now be talking about a mixed start to 2023/24 for LFC rather than a very promising one, while Aston Villa were led a merry dance in trying to handle him during their 3-0 defeat on Merseyside at the weekend.
Felix – who like Nunez was sent off in the very early stages of his time in England – was one of many players who failed to ignite at Chelsea last term, netting just four goals in 20 appearances (Transfermarkt).
Even allowing for how Mo Salah struggled at Stamford Bridge before becoming world-class at Liverpool, the Portugal forward’s loan spell didn’t suggest that he’d have been an upgrade on the £140,000-per-week Uruguay striker (Capology) at Anfield.
It’s hard to imagine the 23-year-old running defences ragged and being a chaotic nuisance for the opposition in the manner that our current number nine has been.
Let’s just be very glad that, however true the above report may be, the Reds didn’t part with Nunez in their ultimately fruitless pursuit of Felix.
#Ep89 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: EOTK Insider with Neil Jones🎙️