Darwin Nunez silenced the fans inside Dean Court on Wednesday night, with a finish many Liverpool fans saw as similar to an early Luis Suarez effort.
Jurgen Klopp hailed it as an “unbelievable” goal, with Nunez coming off the bench to seal the Reds a 2-1 victory in the League Cup fourth round.
It came after jeers from the Bournemouth supporters for a loose touch on the left-hand side, but resulted in a sublime finish cutting onto his right foot.
That strike means Nunez is currently averaging a goal or assist every 56.3 minutes this season, with seven goals and five assists in 14 appearances so far.
And supporters on social media spotted its similarity to a finish from Suarez in the League Cup victory over Stoke back in 2011.
Darwin Nunez ?? Luis Suarez pic.twitter.com/4NAISUMDx7
— MB (@MrBoywunder) November 1, 2023
Not the same trajectory but Nunez’s goal tonight had a whiff of Suarez at Stoke, also in the League Cup. What, they’re Uruguayan too?
— Simon Hughes (@Simon_Hughes__) November 1, 2023
Nunez going Full Suarez there. Takes an awful first touch and gets laughed at by supporters, then scores with his shot seconds later.
— Josh Williams (@DistanceCovered) November 1, 2023
That Nunez goal reminded me of Suarez vs Stoke in the same competition. Gets stick by the home fans then scores a worldie
— Dinesh Kumar (@DHardayal) November 1, 2023
Proper Suarez moment that from Nunez, getting jeered for his touch by the Bournemouth fans and then scores an absolute belter ? ?
— Mike (@MichaelG31) November 1, 2023
The Bournemouth supporters mocking Nunez for miscontrolling the ball in the middle of a hurricane, then him going to get it and scoring an absolute belter. Very Norwich fans & Suarez-esque.
— Ste Hoare (@stehoare) November 1, 2023
Short sleeves, wrist tape, Nunez chants from the crowd, finger to the ear celebration, signature heart and Suarez celebration, Vamos shout and fist bump to the crowd. World class goal can’t be topped. https://t.co/Nd6dEuJjOH
— ? (@TheImmortalKop) November 2, 2023
Comparisons between Nunez and Suarez are predictable, given they are both Uruguayan No. 9s who played for Liverpool, but there are certainly similarities.
Largely, that comes in their mentality as strikers, with Nunez shaking off the boos to deliver another big moment for the Reds in midweek.
It would be overkill at this stage to suggest the 24-year-old could explode like his compatriot, who scored 82 goals and assisted another 46 in 133 to cement himself as one of Liverpool’s best-ever players.
But Nunez is shaking off early criticisms of his game and finally establishing himself as undroppable within Klopp’s setup.
He will be reunited with Suarez this month, too, with reports in Uruguay suggesting the Gremio striker is set to be named in Marcelo Bielsa’s squad for World Cup qualifiers against Argentina and Bolivia.
