"You can see why he is a fans' favorite" - Steve McManaman lauds 'dangerous' Liverpool star's performance in 1-0 West Ham win
Liverpool legend Steve McManaman has heaped praise on Darwin Nunez for his goalscoring performance in the Reds' win against West Ham United in the Premier League.
Liverpool followed up their win against Manchester City with another 1-0 victory, beating West Ham at Anfield on Wednesday (October 19). While Mohamed Salah scored the winner against the Cityzens at the weekend, it was Nunez who delivered the goods for the hosts this time.
Nunez found the back of the net for the Reds with a wonderful header, getting on the end of a cross from Konstantinos Tsimikas. The Uruguayan's first-half goal proved to be the winner for Jurgen Klopp's side.
The striker was replaced by Harvey Elliott before the one-hour mark, but had an eventful night. Apart from scoring his first Anfield goal for Liverpool, he also struck the woodwork once and also forced a good save from West Ham goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski.
Reacting to Nunez's performance, McManaman explained that the striker could have had a hat-trick. The Liverpool great also hailed the 23-year-old as a fan favorite and pointed out how dangerous he looks up front even though he is still 'very raw'. He said on BT Sport [via BBC]:
"You can see why he is a fans' favorite. He has loads of chances when he plays, he is that type of player. It was a brilliant header and an eventful game for Nunez, he could have had a hat-trick. A lot of it is power, there is not a lot of finesse at times. He is still very raw. You have to give him time to improve but he looks dangerous."
Having now scored his first Anfield goal for the Reds, Nunez will be keen to add more to his tally in the coming weeks.
Nunez is finding his rhythm at Liverpool
Liverpool forked out an initial sum of £64.1 million to acquire Nunez's services from Benfica in the summer. The price tag added more pressure on the striker, with each of his performances put under the microscope by fans and pundits.
Nunez thus had a slow start to his life on Merseyside, scoring just two goals in his first eight competitive appearances for the club. However, he appears to be slowly finding his rhythm at Anfield.
The Uruguay international has found the back of the net in each of his last three starts for Klopp's side. He now has five goals and one assist to his name from 12 appearances across all competitions.