His performances this season have been brilliant at times and baffling at others but always captivating. Nunez, explosively athletic and thrillingly unpredictable, is Liverpool’s agent of chaos.
It can be difficult to take your eyes off him in full flow.
In a quiet corner of Liverpool’s training ground, however, during an interview with Sky Sports to preview Saturday’s Premier League game against Wolves, it is his humility which shines through.
The 23-year-old, an £85million signing from Benfica in June, speaks candidly about the ups and downs of his start to life at the club, smiling broadly and laughing boyishly between his answers.
“Difficult” is the word he uses to describe the first few months, a period interrupted by the suspension that followed his sending off against Crystal Palace, for a headbutt on Joachim Andersen, as he was trying to adapt to the demands of the Premier League.
“It’s a very big change,” Nunez tells Sky Sports. “Here, the league is stronger, more competitive. I didn’t expect it to be so strong. Nico Otamendi [the former Manchester City defender and his team-mate at Benfica] told me that, but I still didn’t expect it.
“It has impressed me a lot. There are no bad teams. They are all in this league for a reason. The football is more difficult than in Portugal and more competitive. You don’t get much time.”
He is not the only one who has found it tough going. This has been a tumultuous season for Jurgen Klopp’s side on all fronts.
Nunez had been warned about what to expect. But he arrived at Liverpool on a high, the club’s record signing after a stunning, 34-goal season in Portugal. He admits the step up surprised him.
