“We knew he was a player" - Darwin Nunez's former coach

Marco Pimenta has given his verdict on Liverpool new-boy Darwin Nunez.

The Reds signed the striker from Benfica for a transfer fee of £67.50 million this summer. Nunez arrives at Anfield with a big reputation.

The 23-year-old scored 34 goals in 41 appearances for Benfica. According to Pimenta, who is one of Nunez's former coaches, the Reds have signed a winner.

“When I was invited to work in the technical team of Head Coach Nélson Veríssimo in the main team of Sport Lisboa e Benfica, we already knew Darwin,” he told the Empire of the Kop.

“We knew he was a player with great physical ability, tall, strong, fast and with a tremendous capacity to score goals.

“Since the first day we could see that we were dealing with a different player with a will to always want more.

“The first season was a time to adapt to a different football and social context in Portugal.

“The second season was a time to assert himself and put all his quality on the pitch. And for that his will to improve and grow was decisive.

“On and off the field, manager Nélson Veríssimo and his technical team try to develop all his qualities in the different areas tactical, technical and physical.

“But everything is mainly due to Darwin and his capacity to work and his winning mentality.”

Anfield Watch Verdict

As we have already pointed out, Nunez is a very good player. But, it's brilliant to hear that he possesses a superb attitude.

At the end of the day, you want players that are willing to fight for everything out on the pitch representing your club.

Going by Pimenta's comments, Nunez will do exactly that. Hopefully the striker can score a few goals during the pre-season.

Finding the back of the net gives forwards confidence, which is why we want Nunez to have a solid pre-season ahead of the 2022-23 Premier League campaign.