Despite the frustrating nature of his playing style, Darwin Nunez has been missed at Liverpool this season.
The Uruguayan did not always cover himself in glory during his three years at Anfield, but he gave it everything whenever he played for the Reds.
In a season where too many Liverpool players have been guilty of not showing the necessary levels of fight, Nunez would have been a welcome option.
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Nevertheless, the time was clearly right for him to move on last summer and he eventually joined Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal.
Things started well for Nunez with the Saudis, but after Al Hilal signed Karim Benzema late into the January transfer window, the former Liverpool No. 9 has made it clear what he thinks of his new role as a back-up.
Darwin Nunez seemingly unhappy at Al Hilal
Benzema is a known entity in Saudi football having played for Al Ittihad for the past two-and-a-half seasons. As former Ballon d’Or winner and long-time Real Madrid legend he is also a much bigger name than Nunez.
The Frenchman made his Al Hilal debut on Thursday and quickly scored a hat-trick. Meanwhile, Nunez was not even named in Simone Inzaghi’s squad.
Darwin Nunez thanks the Anfield crowd after scoring for Liverpool during the pre-season match against Athletic Bilbao
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There does appear to be trouble in paradise from Nunez’s point of view, and the former Liverpool star has simply changed his Instagram profile picture to a plain black circle in reflection of that.
The 26-year-old is very much a footballer who makes points via social media, having occasionally shown his dissatisfaction while at Liverpool.
Having failed to show his best consistently on Merseyside, it now looks as though Nunez could have to find himself a new club once again, with journalist Fabrizio Romano predicting a summer move back to Europe.
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Darwin Nunez backed for European return
It was disappointing to see Nunez head for Saudi Arabia at such a young age when it felt as though he had more to give on the European stage.
Napoli had been desperately trying to sign him last summer but ultimately could not afford the asking price Liverpool set.
The Italian champions may be on alert after seeing Nunez’s new situation in Riyadh, and as Romano said on a YouTube video on Wednesday, the Uruguay international is a candidate to leave Al Hilal at the end of the season.
“What I’m told is that Darwin Nunez is not going to Fenerbahce, there is no possibility on the player’s side,” he said.
“I think in the summer there could be movements around Darwin Nunez, that could be an interesting story to follow, the return to Europe of Darwin Nunez but at the moment I’m not aware of anything advanced.”
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