Darwin Nunez had a priceless reaction to being pranked by a young fan, who posed for a picture with the Liverpool striker before revealing his Manchester United shirt.
Nunez has certainly split opinion since arriving in the Premier League last summer, with fans expecting him to have a similar impact to Erling Haaland.
That certainly hasn’t been the case for the Uruguayan, but he’s still scored six goals in the league for Jurgen Klopp’s side and has many supporters in Merseyside.
On the weekend fans showed their love for him by singing his name, and his reaction was extremely wholesome, as he beamed with pride.
He must have thought another fan was sharing their affection for him when they paused to take a picture with him, only to reveal a United kit underneath their jacket, and Nunez’s reaction was brilliant, as you can see in the video below.
Nunez recently explained why he, and new teammate Cody Gakpo, may have struggled with their starts to life at Anfield, explaining he had to get used to the team.
“Here at Liverpool I have teammates who are all high-quality footballers,” Nunez told the club website.
“I need to be able to understand how they play a little more and it’s the same for them with me. It’s what settling into each other’s games is all about.
“They get used to how I play and, in turn, I grow accustomed to how they play. I think that in time we’ll start to see some good and positive results.”
The Reds were struggling recently but bounced back this week with two huge results, first beating Everton in the Merseyside derby and then defeating top-four rivals Newcastle United at the weekend.
The former Benfica star was on target at St James’ Park, opening the scoring after 10 minutes, with Gakpo doubling the lead seven minutes later.
It was Eddie Howe’s side’s second loss in the league of the campaign, having also lost the reverse fixture, thanks to a super late injury time goal.
Their win left Liverpool just six points off the Magpies, with a game in hand, although it’s now Tottenham Hotspur in the fourth Champions League spot.
Worse news for Newcastle was the loss of Nick Pope for the Carabao Cup at the weekend after he was sent off against Liverpool when he lost his head and handled the ball outside of the area.
“Not a league for boys…” – Callum Wilson gives his verdict on Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez.
Newcastle striker Callum Wilson has backed Liverpool forward Darwin Nunez to start scoring regularly once he has become more accustomed to English football.
There were huge expectations when Nunez, 23, joined Liverpool from Benfica in the summer transfer window.
The Reds forked out an initial fee of £64.2m for the Uruguay international, which could rise to as much as £85m with add-ons.
Nunez has managed a respectable return of 10 goals in 26 games since arriving at Anfield but has been accused of wastefulness in front of goal.
He is without a goal in his last five league appearances for Liverpool, who are now 10th in the Premier League – 11 points off the top four.
Wilson: Nunez will need time to adapt
Newcastle striker Wilson sympathizes with Nunez and believes it is only a matter of time before he settles in the Premier League.
“He is young, he’s 23 years old, and he has just come to the Premier League which is a difficult league,” Wilson said on the BBC’s The Footballer’s Football Podcast, as reported by Anfield Watch.
“It’s not a league for boys, it’s a league for men and at the end of the day he’s come from a league that is a little bit different.
“It’s going to take him time to adapt. But there’s no chill on social media so any little thing that happens is becoming a big thing and he’s going to see that, he’s going to be sent that [meme] and he’s going to see people laughing at that.
“And then it just makes you go more and more inward, especially at that age.
“He seems like a vibrant guy, like a no-nonsense kind of guy, so he just has to stick his chest out and keep going. If you miss the chance, so what.
“As long as you are in a position to make those chances you’re not going to keep missing. The clinical finishing will come over time after he’s playing more regularly and he’s played in this league for a little while.”
Nunez will be hoping to end his scoreless streak when Liverpool faces rivals Everton in the Merseyside derby at Anfield on Monday.
The Reds will then face Wilson’s Newcastle team at St James’ Park on February 18.
