Slot then showed a steel of his own in both defending and praising his player, as well as his team’s form. The Liverpool manager first disagreed with the phrasing of questions that portrayed a “disappointing season” for Nunez, insisting it has just been a case of much more competition for places in a team that is top of the league.

In another era, in another kind of football, Darwin Núñez might be the type of unconventional striker who would be a cult hero at a smaller club, but at Liverpool in 2025, when the margins are so tight at the top of the Premier League and every player must earn his place,