Following his dismissal for headbutting Crystal Palace center-back Joachim Andersen during Monday night’s 1-1 Premier League tie at Anfield, Darwin Nunez has spoken out and issued an apology to the Liverpool fans.
Following an altercation with Joachim Andersen at Anfield, Nunez received his marching orders on his Reds’ home debut. Due to violent behavior that occurred in the second half of the game as Liverpool attempted to come back from a 1-0 deficit. The 23-year-old striker is now facing a three-match suspension. Liverpool has chosen not to challenge the prohibition.
Jurgen Klopp is troubled by the Uruguayan player’s poor behavior because Roberto Firmino is one of many Liverpool players who is on the treatment table. Nunez has faced considerable blowback over the past day, and he has now turned to social media for support.
Klopp’s disappointment and Nunez’ apology
Klopp has already made his disappointment clear by telling Sky Sports: “Darwin knows [he let his teammates down]. I will talk to him. It was not a reaction we want to see”
“He know he will be challenged in this way, centre-halves will do that, but it is not a reaction we want. But we will use the time productively. We will use the suspension for physical work to make him strong – not a punishment but to make him stronger.”
Liverpool midfielder James Milner also gave his assessment of the incident, saying: “He is going to be disappointed in that. We have to get around him and rally. He will learn from it.”
His red card capped a terrible night for Nunez, who was guilty of missing two clear-cut opportunities before he reacted badly to Andersen following a minor clash off the ball. The £85million striker volleyed over at the back post early on before hitting the post with a scuffed effort from Harvey Elliott’s ball over the top.
Disappointment for Nunez and Liverpool
Nunez won’t be available for Liverpool’s next three games. The first is a trip to Old Trafford, where Liverpool will attempt to duplicate their spectacular triumph over Manchester United from the previous campaign. He won’t play against Bournemouth or Newcastle United at home, but he will be available to play against Everton in the Merseyside Derby on September 3.
It is a disappointing period for Nunez, who had a fast start to life in the Premier League after scoring against Manchester City in the Community Shield and against Fulham in the season opener.
It is even more disappointing for Liverpool, who will now be without their star forward after an uncharacteristic disappointing start to the 2022/23 campaign. Many expected the Reds to dispatch Fulham with ease on the opening day but it was not the case as they had to fight from a goal down on two occasions to claim a point.
Against Crystal Palace, they showed their resilience but were still lucky to take home a point after 90 minutes. Liverpool will now take on a woeful Manchester United next at Old Trafford and will be looking to register their first win of the campaign.
