Jurgen Klopp stated that he “fell in love” with Darwin Nunez after observing the Uruguayan forward play against Liverpool in the Champions League quarterfinals against Benfica last season.
In June, Nunez completed his transfer to Anfield after Liverpool. This was after the club paid an initial fee of £64 million. However, his price could reach £85 million, which would be £10 million more than what they paid Southampton for Virgil van Dijk.
Since then, Klopp has admitted that Nunez’s performance against Liverpool in the Champions League, in which he scored both at home and away, persuaded him to part with such a substantial quantity of money.
Klopp said ‘When he played in front of us [in the Champions League], he was incredibly impressed.”
“When preparing Benfica, you know down to the shoe size — we know virtually everything about an opponent, so we are fully aware of Darwin’s quality”.
“It was unclear whether he would play in the first game after returning from international duty. It was evident that he was extremely talented. But when seen in person, it was quite stunning.”
“The troubles he caused us as a result of his strength, technique, desire, and cunning actions. All of us fell in love during these two games. It’s a good thing that the South American is so hostile!”
“When we realized we had a decent chance of signing him, we went all-in, and we’re ecstatic that he’s now on board”.
Right-back Calvin Ramsay, who was acquired from Aberdeen for £6.5 million, is currently injured, according to Klopp.
The Liverpool boss referred to it as a “minor injury” but warned that it may become a long-term problem if they do not “take care of it immediately.”
Klopp stated, “Unfortunately, Calvin is now not training with us due to a minor injury. Nobody knew, we discovered it during his medical examination.
The medical department informs us that if we do not address this issue immediately, he will develop a problem in the future.
‘When you are so young, you obviously have a long career ahead of you, therefore we are very prudent in these times; therefore, he has not yet trained with the team but is doing a great deal of fitness training. I believe it will not take too long.
Throughout the season, the teenager made 33 appearances in all competitions, recording one goal and nine assists.
Therefore, Liverpool deemed it prudent to acquire the defender and have him play second fiddle to Trent Alexander-Arnold for the foreseeable future.