Darwin Nunez has revealed that former Liverpool striker Luis Suarez told him he will inherit his legendary No.9 shirt with Uruguay – and that he is ready to BEAR his country’s goal-scoring weight in a new era without the experienced forward.
Suarez was left out of Uruguay’s team for their upcoming South American World Cup qualifying matches, along with fellow veteran Edinson Cavani, as newly-appointed manager Marcelo Bielsa sought to rebuild the squad following a poor group stage elimination at last winter’s World Cup.
As a result, the forward, who scored a quickfire brace in Liverpool’s smash-and-grab victory over Newcastle United last weekend, has admitted that Suarez, with whom he formed a close relationship during their time as international teammates, has told him to inherit Uruguay’s famous No.9 shirt, with which he scored 68 goals in 137 appearances.
“I admire him a lot, and for me he was a very important piece in the national team and during the World Cup, because he helped me a lot,” Nunez said of Suarez, who became the first Uruguayan to play for Liverpool in 2011. “He wanted me to do a good job representing 9.” I asked for it, and he agreed; and if he needs to return, the number 9 is his.”
Nunez made his Premier League debut against Aston Villa on Sunday, following his stunning cameo at St James’ Park the previous weekend. The 23-year-old was involved in the Reds’ second goal before assisting Mohamed Salah to cap off an outstanding 3-0 victory for Jurgen Klopp’s side.
And now, ahead of Uruguay’s international doubleheader against Chile and Ecuador later this month, the Liverpool forward has stated that he is delighted to be back on the field with the Blue and Whites and is eager to improve his game under Bielsa’s tutelage.
“I am very happy to be back with the national team, I have already missed a lot,” Nunez said. “We were talking with Marcelo, and he showed me some of my previous game plays and corrected me on a few things.” It’s time to head to the complex, where we’ll meet to get to know each other better.”
Liverpool and Nunez will return to Premier League action on September 16th, when they travel to Wolves.