New Liverpool boss Arne Slot , has made it clear to Darwin Nunez that he is a key part of his plans .
The Dutchman, who succeeded Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool boss, was keen to reassure the club's hefty $107m (£85m/€98m) 2022 signing that he won't be shown the door this summer; rather, he is looking to make the Uruguayan striker the leading man in his Reds side. Liverpool previously rejected a bid from Chelsea for Nunez, and it seems Slot also has no intent of losing him.
Slot is acutely aware Nunez may have felt somewhat sidelined as Klopp's tenure wound down, especially after the 25-year-old refused to applauding Klopp during his last-match guard of honour back in May. Kicking off his Liverpool tenure, Slot wasted no time and gave Nunez a ring while the latter was gearing up for Copa America duty, signalling to him that he is essential to the Reds plans this season.
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Nunez fits Slot's high-energy pressing game like a glove and was reportedly given a massive confidence boost hearing the new Reds boss wants him to lead the line. While he got involved in a Copa American tussle with Colombian fans following Uruguay's semi-final defeat, Nunez is now recharged and ready to go after an extended break.
Meanwhile, Diogo Jota is also ready to go after having linked up with the Reds in the US after his Euro 2024 campaign with Portugal, finally providing Slot the perfect opportunity to fine-tune his intense press-first tactics with an actual centre-forward - a stark contrast to earlier friendlies.
Slot is also keen on using video analysis to demonstrate how teams like Manchester City and his old side Feyenoord force errors through high-pressure play.
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Liverpool have yet to make a move in the transfer market since Slot's appointment, but the Dutch tactician is content to wait for the right player who fits his system. The former Feyenoord boss has earned a reputation in the Netherlands for achieving results on tight budgets, a key factor in Liverpool's decision to lure him away from the Eredivisie.
In his six seasons as a manager with Cambuur, AZ Alkmaar and Feyenoord, he has never spent more than $8.9m (£7m/€8.2m) on a single transfer. Instead, he has focused on developing the talent he inherited, consistently securing higher league positions than his predecessors.
Slot's first full season as a coach saw him guide Cambuur to the brink of promotion to the Eredivisie before moving to AZ as assistant coach.
When he took over from John van den Brom in 2019, he led a surprise title challenge that saw the club compete with Erik ten Hag's Ajax at the top of the table until the season was cancelled due to the pandemic.
AZ still made nearly $64m (£50m/€58m) from player sales during Slot's tenure. At Feyenoord, it was a similar story. Despite a budget of just $7.6m (£6m/€7m) and the departure or release of 16 players when he took over, Slot guided the team to the Conference League Final, where they were defeated by Jose Mourinho's Roma.
The following season, Feyenoord managed to raise $89m (£70m/€76m) by selling 15 players. Despite half of this money being used for new signings, six academy players still made it into the championship-winning squad. The season before that also saw a significant overhaul at Feyenoord as they once again took advantage of the transfer market, but still secured the Dutch Cup.
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