**Darwin Nunez is reportedly returning to Liverpool despite being shipped off to Saudi Arabia after an unsatisfactory spell at Anfield.**
When Nunez left Anfield in August 2025, it was a sad end. Liverpool signed the Uruguayan for an initial £64m, but sold him for £56.6m three years later.
The 26-year-old scored 40 goals and assisted 26 in 143 games during his time at the club. Now, after a year at Al Hilal, where he has reportedly been earning £400,000 per week, Nunez is returning to Liverpool.
This claim was from Uruguayan journalist Martin Charquero, who reports: “Darwin Núñez returns to Liverpool. The confirmation will not be given in these days since the player asked to be focused with the Uruguayan National Team.”
Charquero says that the initial claim from Juan Pablo Romero reporting on YouTube for Minuto 1.
The big question: Where is the value in signing Nunez?
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First of all, Liverpool made at least a £7.4m loss on the transfer fee paid to Benfica, notwithstanding undisclosed bonus payments which would have likely been paid after Liverpool won the 2025 Premier League title.
Money aside. What do Liverpool gain from this?
Well, Liverpool are in a striker deficit. The tragic loss of Diogo Jota, while way more of a human loss than a football loss, did leave Liverpool a striker down even before they sold Nunez. Liverpool then signed Hugo Ekitike, which means Liverpool went into the 2025-26 season lacking depth in the striker department.
Ekitike then suffered a horrible Achilles tendon rupture, which means Liverpool only have Alexander Isak, who is injury-prone, to rely on up front heading into the 2026-27 season.
Nunez could be a useful back-up and would arrive without the pressure of a massive transfer fee nor the pressure of being the starting striker.
There is an argument to be made that signing Nunez would be a step backwards, but he is an excellent backup option in my opinion.
The 26-year-old will have to accept a drastic reduction in terms of income in order to facilitate a move to Anfield. That said, he has earned £20.8m in the last 12 months at a rate of £400k per week, so he is likely happy to accept this.
Nunez has spoken about missing Liverpool and the Anfield faithful, so a reunion with the Kop would likely be more meaningful than the riches he has amassed in Saudi Arabia.
Speaking to [Uruguay’s media team](https://x.com/Uruguay/status/2036809655272280318), he said: _“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss them. The truth is, they made me feel very welcome, and my family too._
_“During some difficult times I went through personally, the people always gave me that affection, that support, and that was very important to me, and obviously I miss Liverpool.”_