Liverpool sharpshooter withdrawn at half-time on international duty amid Anfield return

11/20/2024 08:30 AM

Liverpool fans often dread international breaks as they normally lead to injury concerns and that may have happened once again with one man being withdrawn early for their nation.

With the scoreline at 0-0 at half-time, Rodrigo Aguirre was brought onto the pitch in place of Darwin Nunez and thus his night's work against Brazil was brought to an early end.

From a selfish point of view, it's good that our man was given the chance to rest but there may also be some eyebrows raised about both possible injury and then performance level.

SofaScore handed our striker a 6.7 rating out of 10, which was pretty much the average score for any player in Marcelo Bielsa's side and so it's unlikely it was a decision made purely on an okay performance.

That would then leave either injury or resting as the possible decision by the former Leeds United boss, something all Reds will certainly hope is the latter.

Darwin Nunez could be a fitness doubt for Southampton

We know the difficulties placed on the South American players to be able to come back to Merseyside and be immediately ready to make an impact for the Reds.

Arne Slot will likely have been happy to see an early withdrawal for his No.9, especially as Diogo Jota is facing a race against time to be fit for Southampton.

After watching Luis Diaz play such a key role in a draining week for Colombia, it's certainly going to be another tough decision to balance form and fitness for the entire squad.

Let's hope the right decision is made to ensure that we can not only record a victory against the newly promoted club but also be well equipped for the upcoming matches against the likes of Real Madrid, Manchester City, Newcastle and Everton.

You can view confirmation of Nunez's substitution via @Uruguay on X:

45' 𝘾𝘼𝙈𝘽𝙄𝙊

Rodrigo Aguirre
Darwin Núñez@CBF_Futebol 0-0 @Uruguay

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— Selección Uruguaya (@Uruguay) November 20, 2024

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