Wayne Parnell explained the motivation he takes from Cristiano Ronaldo as the bowler looked towards South Africa's T20 World Cup clash with the Netherlands.
Ronaldo has altered his goal celebration as of late, replacing his famous "Siu" with a "peace of mind" gesture, seemingly in response to his trouble at Manchester United this season.
It is a celebration that has been copied at the T20 World Cup by South Africa paceman Parnell, standing with his eyes closed, fingers crossed in front of his chest and his head rolled back.
Parnell has taken five wickets so far in Australia, helping South Africa to two victories in Group 2. Ahead of their final match of the pool stage against the Netherlands on Sunday, the Proteas sit in second place, and a victory over the Dutch would guarantee their place in the last four.
And in his pre-match press conference, Parnell explained how he takes inspiration from one of the world's finest footballers.
He said: "It's the Ronaldo celebration. He has always been one of my favourite footballers, and I've obviously followed his career quite closely.
"And I think I've kind of taken on some stuff that he has been going through, you know, as a professional athlete and someone that's very competitive and passionate about doing well.
"That's something that I've always wanted to do as well is contribute to the team's success."
It is not all about emulating an idol, though. For Parnell, it is also about enjoying playing in front of crowds again following the coronavirus pandemic.
"It's just about having fun as well," Parnell added, "I think, you know, we're very lucky to be playing this sport and to be able to do it on this world stage.
"Obviously, there's no COVID, so we have fans back, and it's just about entertaining everyone."
Looking ahead to South Africa's must-win game on Sunday, Parnell said: "I think now it's just really simple. If you actually look at it, tomorrow is basically a quarter-final. Then obviously if we win that, we go to a semi-final. If we win that, we go to the final.
"In a way it's actually worked out well where we are under a certain amount of pressure to obviously get through, but I always like to look at it from a positive point of view where it's basically a quarter-final. It's just about winning it really."
Ben Chilwell said his "dream" was in tatters after the Chelsea left-back was knocked out of contention for England's World Cup trip.
The former Leicester City defender suffered a hamstring injury in the closing seconds of Chelsea's Champions League game against Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday.
He underwent scans on Friday, and the results showed a "significant" problem, Chelsea announced.
It comes after Chilwell recovered from a cruciate knee ligament injury to reclaim his place in the Blues team and show he could have been an asset for England.
While his club said only that 25-year-old Chilwell was "expected" to miss the tournament in Qatar, the player himself added the finality by conceding there was no chance he would make Gareth Southgate's squad.
He wrote on Twitter: "Following my ACL injury I worked so hard to make sure I was ready for the World Cup. It has always been a dream of mine.
"Unfortunately, this won't be possible following my scan results. I'll do all I can to get back playing for Chelsea ASAP. Thanks for the messages of support."
Chilwell's Chelsea and England team-mate Raheem Sterling sent a message of sympathy, posting: "Prayers up for my guy Chilly. Minor setback, major comeback."
Alisson says Liverpool must rediscover their consistency to turn around their poor season, calling on the Reds to draw on the experience of recovering from a disappointing 2020-21 campaign.
Having won both domestic cups and finished as runners-up in the Premier League and Champions League last term, Jurgen Klopp's team have endured a dire start to this season.
Liverpool sit eight points adrift of the Premier League's top four ahead of Sunday's trip to Tottenham, and Alisson says Klopp's men must bounce back in the same manner they did two seasons ago – when they finished an injury-disrupted campaign in third.
"We always have belief," Alisson told Sky Sports. "We have the understanding that things are not going so well for us so far.
"We have to be realistic. We have to be humble as well, to accept it, to fight more and to recognise what is going wrong and to change it.
"That is part of our team, being humble, fighting. We know that sometimes we cannot be the best on the pitch, but we will be the ones who fight the most. This is what we have done so far, and it worked out in other seasons for us.
"We can't forget the season we had before the last one, when we had to fight a lot. We struggled in the competition because of injuries, because of outside circumstances, but we came back.
"Something we all have in common, something we all agree on, [is] that we have to find our consistency again.
"Everybody is used to seeing it in our team. We, the players, and the people as well. A consistent Liverpool, conceding only a few goals, keeping clean sheets, scoring, winning games."
Liverpool are still yet to win an away Premier League game this season, their worst such run from the start of a campaign since 2006-07 (a sequence of seven), and would slip 13 points behind third-placed opponents Tottenham with a defeat on Sunday.
Klopp's side are therefore under huge pressure to claim a result in north London, but Alisson says they must shut out the noise as they bid to change their fortunes.
"It [pressure] is part of football," he added. "It is not something that is easy to deal with. But we have all played football for a while now, and I understand that this is part of it.
"You are going to have pressure from the outside world, from the supporters, from the media. Only playing for a big club are you going to have this kind of pressure.
"I see it as normal, but we have to fight back, and our response has to be on the pitch with performances. What we can't do is let the criticism affect us and bring us down more."
Edinson Cavani is set to miss Valencia's match against Real Sociedad on Sunday as he battles an ankle injury just two weeks out from the World Cup.
The Uruguay forward joined Valencia at the start of this season after his Manchester United contract expired and has scored four goals in seven LaLiga games.
However, the 35-year-old's hopes of having an impact at his fourth and likely final World Cup have been hit by a recurring ankle problem.
Valencia have tried to protect Cavani, who has completed 90 minutes only once this season.
But that full shift against Mallorca last month was followed by an early withdrawal against Barcelona, with the striker replaced after just 18 minutes.
Cavani missed training on Saturday, and Valencia coach Gennaro Gattuso accepted it was "difficult" to see how he could face La Real.
"He's not right," Gattuso said. "He has had problems in the ankle for a long time."
Cavani at least has a little time to get fit to feature for Uruguay, whose Qatar 2022 opener is not until November 24 against South Korea.
But Gattuso insisted the player's primary focus was featuring for Valencia, dismissing the idea he was sitting out only due to the spectre of the World Cup.
"I've played three World Cups, none of them in December," the coach said. "I've always been a little scared, but I didn't think about whether I was going to get injured.
"Cavani's problem is his ankle. He's playing with great responsibility, but it's something that he's carried for a long time."
Lionel Messi will miss Paris Saint-Germain's Ligue 1 trip to Lorient after suffering from inflammation in his Achilles tendon, but Christophe Galtier expects him to return before the World Cup.
Messi has been in spectacular form during his second season with PSG, recording 26 goal contributions (12 goals, 14 assists) in all competitions this campaign.
With just over two weeks to go until Argentina's World Cup opener against Saudi Arabia, however, a PSG medical update sparked fears over Messi's condition by ruling him out of Sunday's match.
The club said Messi would miss that fixture as a precautionary measure before returning to training next week, and Galtier expects him to be available against Auxerre on November 13.
"Messi has inflammation in his tendon," Galtier said at Saturday's pre-match news conference. "I think he will be available for our next game, just like Presnel Kimpembe, who is still in rehabilitation.
"He should be back for the Auxerre game."
The packed pre-World Cup schedule has been heavily criticised amid a swathe of injuries to big-name players including Paul Pogba, Son Heung-min and Reece James, leading some onlookers to suggest players may play with caution ahead of the tournament.
While some coaches, including Real Madrid's Carlo Ancelotti and Tottenham's Antonio Conte, have said their players will not be thinking about the World Cup, Galtier revealed he regularly discusses such considerations with his own squad.
"We have played a lot, it is a very intense season, and that is the case for everyone, and we must not hide from that, of course, it generates fatigue," Galtier said.
"Usually, our last Champions League group game is in mid-December. Having so many weeks with Champions League games has taken up a lot of energy.
"There are no excuses, that's how it is. Of course, we are a bit tired, we are worn out.
"Of course, every player that may be involved at the World Cup has that fear in their heads, even more so when the Champions League group stage has finished, with all those fixtures.
"You might have that in your head as a player. I often speak to the players and listen to them. We have to listen to them and they can tell us anything.
"If someone is apprehensive, I tell them to have faith in what we put forward here in training. If a player comes to me and says they don't want to play, he won't play."
Jos Buttler believes Ben Stokes will "grow and grow" as England aim for T20 World Cup glory in Australia.
Stokes' unbeaten 42 helped guide England to a four-wicket win over Sri Lanka on Saturday at the Sydney Cricket Ground, ensuring they progressed from Group 1 alongside New Zealand, last year's runners up.
It means the reigning champions and hosts Australia failed to reach the last four, with England set to face the winner of Group 2 in Adelaide for a place in the final.
England appeared to be cruising towards victory when, having limited Sri Lanka to 141-8, Buttler and opening partner Alex Hales plundered their way to 75 without loss.
Yet the loss of five wickets for 36 runs in the space of seven overs resulted in a nervy finish for England, and Stokes had to step up late on to set the stage for Chris Woakes to strike the winning boundary with two balls to spare.
"Not a great watch, to be honest – didn't enjoy that much," Buttler said at the post-match presentation.
"We knew, coming here, we had to find a way to win the game, thankfully we did that."
Asked if Stokes was the ideal player for the scenario, Buttler replied: "Absolutely, it's the kind of situation he's made for, I'm delighted for him and when he's at the crease, that gives you a sense of calm.
"He can play a lot of roles, he effects the game in all facets, he's a proper competitor and it's getting to the stage of the competition where you'll just see him grow and grow."
Stokes missed last year's T20 World Cup, and only returned to action in the format in a warm-up series against Australia ahead of this edition of the tournament, with his score on Saturday his best since he managed 46 against India in March 2021.
Another key player for England against Sri Lanka was Adil Rashid, whose figures of 1-16 saw him named the Player of the Match.
When asked if he was worried by the fast start Sri Lanka made with the bat, Buttler said: "Yeah, a little bit, they got off to a really good start and having lost the toss we knew the wicket would probably slow up as we went along.
"I thought it was a fantastic over from Adil Rashid at the back end of the powerplay to change the momentum. He's been someone we've always turned to and I was really pleased with his performance.
"I think a lot of people always look at the end column, maybe he hasn't picked up the wickets he usually does. I don't think he's bowled with much luck, to be honest. He's had a few chances that were missed, I think he's still bowling well, and on surfaces like this he's a really tough bowler to face."
Rashid took the wicket of opener Pathum Nissanka, whose 67 had anchored Sri Lanka's innings.
Pathum has now accumulated over 1,000 T20I runs, becoming the 10th player from his nation to reach the milestone.
Ben Chilwell is expected to miss England's World Cup campaign after sustaining a "significant" hamstring injury, Chelsea have confirmed.
Chilwell limped out of the Blues' 2-1 Champions League win over Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday, leaving head coach Graham Potter concerned.
Potter said the injury represented a "blow" for Chelsea, adding: "Fingers crossed, when we get it scanned it isn't as bad, it can be not as severe, but clearly we are disappointed."
Chilwell's England team-mate Mason Mount said it was "tough to watch" the left-back suffer the injury less than three weeks before the World Cup gets under way, and Gareth Southgate's fears have been realised with the news that his hamstring problem is "significant".
A statement released by Chelsea on Saturday read: "Following the injury sustained in our recent game against Dinamo Zagreb, Ben has undergone a scan on his hamstring.
"Results show that Ben has suffered a significant injury and the defender is unfortunately expected to miss the World Cup.
"Ben will now begin a rehabilitation programme with the club's medical department."
Chilwell's absence for the trip to Qatar deepens a defensive crisis for England, with fellow full-backs Reece James and Kyle Walker doubtful for the tournament.
Southgate only named two recognised left-backs in his squad for the Three Lions' most recent Nations League fixtures in September, and the likes of Bukayo Saka and Kieran Trippier may now be expected to deputise for Manchester United's Luke Shaw.
England begin their Group B campaign against Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium on November 21.
Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes held their nerve to guide England to a four-wicket win over Sri Lanka and into the T20 World Cup semi-finals.
Boasting a better net run-rate than hosts Australia in Group 1, England knew victory would be enough at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday to see them progress alongside New Zealand at the expense of the reigning champions.
Matters looked bleak for Jos Buttler's team, however, when a sloppy opening seven overs bowlers allowed Sri Lanka to advance for 65-1, yet spearheaded by Mark Wood's 3-26 and Adil Rashid's 1-16 – his wicket being the dismissal of the excellent Pathum Nissanka (67) – England took seven wickets for just 76 runs for the remainder of the innings, limiting their opponents to 141-8.
England looked to be strolling to victory at 75-0 from the opening 43 deliveries, with Alex Hales and Buttler excelling in the power play before the latter succumbed to Wanindu Hasaranga.
Hales, whose 47 included eight boundaries, was caught and bowled by Hasaranga two overs later, with Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone and Moeen Ali falling in quick succession as England wobbled.
Sam Curran picked out Kasun Rajitha at fine leg to pile the pressure on, yet Stokes (42) – so many times a hero – provided the composure, chipping away to leave England needing five runs from the final over.
It was Woakes who provided the final flourish, whipping a cut away to the boundary to ensure victory with two balls to spare.
England's redemption shot
Under Eoin Morgan, England reached the semi-finals of last year's T20 World Cup, only to fall short against New Zealand, who themselves were beaten by Australia in the final.
England – who have now won each of their last eight men's T20Is against Sri Lanka – will now face the winner of Group 2 for a place in the showpiece match this time around.
Pathum reaches Sri Lanka milestone
His knock might ultimately have proved fruitless, but it saw Pathum become the 10th Sri Lanka batter to accumulate 1,000 T20I runs, while he is the second-fastest to achieve the feat in terms of innings (after Kusal Perera).
Hasaranga also had a fine match with the ball, finishing with 2-23. It means he ends the tournament with 15 wickets, one short of his tally from the 2021 edition (16), which is the highest on record in the competition's history.
Pep Guardiola believes Newcastle United are contenders for the Premier League trophy this season and feels Liverpool cannot be ruled out of the running, naming six rivals for Manchester City's crown.
City are bidding for a third consecutive Premier League triumph and sit two points behind early-season leaders Arsenal ahead of this weekend's fixtures.
With last season's runners-up Liverpool languishing in ninth place amid a dire start to the campaign, the upper reaches of the table have an unfamiliar look – with Newcastle flying high in fourth.
Eddie Howe's team have won three successive Premier League games and have conceded just 10 goals in their 13 outings in the competition this term – fewer than any other side, leading Guardiola to talk up their chances.
Asked which teams were in contention for the title, Guardiola said: "I would say Arsenal, I would say Man City, I would say Chelsea, I would say Newcastle, I would say Tottenham, I would say [Manchester] United and I would say Liverpool as well.
"I think these teams can fight for the title."
Pushed on why he viewed Newcastle as part of that conversation, Guardiola highlighted their lack of European football and the high-pressing style instilled by Howe.
"They have incredible physicality," Guardiola said, "they don't play in Europe and when this happens, it's a big advantage when arriving at the decisive moment in terms of energy.
"They have incredible energy for themselves. Imagine having one long week [to prepare]. A good manager, top-class players, experienced ones, quality in the middle, box-to-box transition team.
"The way they have the intensity without the ball is so impressive, it's high, and that is a big difference. They have a good momentum and I imagine that they are going to stay there for longer."
Much of Guardiola's trophy-laden spell at City has been characterised by close title battles with Liverpool, and he has refused to write off Jurgen Klopp's side despite their poor start.
"In the past, the same manager and the same squad are able to make 17 victories in a row, 18 victories in a row, 14 victories in a row," Guardiola said.
"Many times in these last years they have done it, why can't [they] do it again?
"Nobody knows what is going to happen after the World Cup with the transfer window, how the players come back. This is my feeling.
"The first candidate right now is Arsenal. Why? They are top of the league and the rest are behind. The gap is close.
"We'll see how we finish in the last two games, but I think many of these teams deserve to be there, and we'll see how they play against all of them.
"How teams like United and Newcastle have stepped forward, and how Tottenham have done so, they can be there, [there are] no doubts."
Son Heung-min has no chance of making his Tottenham return before the World Cup after suffering a fracture around his left eye, head coach Antonio Conte has declared.
The South Korea forward suffered the injury in Spurs' Champions League win over Marseille on Tuesday, leaving him requiring surgery and throwing his hopes of appearing in Qatar into doubt.
Tottenham have endured something of an injury crisis of late, with Dejan Kulusevski, Richarlison and Cristian Romero all sitting out recent matches, leaving Conte short of options with three games remaining before the World Cup.
Spurs host Liverpool on Sunday before an EFL Cup trip in midweek to face Nottingham Forest, then welcoming Leeds in the final game before the tournament in Qatar, and Conte accepts Son will not be available for those matches.
"Today [Friday], Sonny is having his surgery. It's a pity, it's a pity for him. I hope for him to recover for the World Cup," Conte told Sky Sports.
"For sure, to play the last three games with us will be impossible. This is not a lucky period for us, with Kulusevski, Richarlison and Romero out, now Sonny.
"Lucas Moura is up and down with a problem in his tendon. It's not easy, but we are trying to face the situation in the best possible way."
The scheduling of a mid-season World Cup has attracted renewed criticism after several big-name players suffered injuries in recent weeks, with the likes of Paul Pogba, Raphael Varane, Reece James and Kyle Walker among those either ruled out or doubtful for the tournament.
The situation has led to suggestions players may play with caution to avoid a similar fate, but Conte, who missed Italy's Euro 1996 campaign through injury, says that would be selfish.
Asked whether players might take it easy, Conte said: "No, honestly. I was a player, and I missed the European Championship in England because I had a serious injury in the final of the Champions League, Juventus against Ajax in 1996.
"Absolutely not. I can only speak about my players, the player wants to play in every single game, to try to win.
"I don't know or like players that think to save themselves to play a competition like this, because it means you have a selfish player."
Wolves have confirmed the appointment of Julen Lopetegui as their new head coach, bringing an end to their search for Bruno Lage's replacement.
Lage was axed at the start of October following Wolves' defeat to West Ham, but they have picked up just four points from five matches since then and sit second-bottom of the Premier League heading into the weekend's fixtures.
Lopetegui was dismissed by Sevilla last month after spending over three years with the Andalusian side, who he guided to Europa League success in 2020, and was long-reported as a priority target for Wolves.
While it was reported the former Real Madrid and Spain coach initially rejected Wolves' advances, on Saturday it was announced he had taken up their offer.
Lopetegui will not take charge at Wolves until Monday, November 14, though, meaning he will have to wait until after the World Cup for his first game in charge, which will come against Everton on Boxing Day.
In a statement, Wolves chairman Jeff Shi said: "Julen is a top coach, with excellent experience at an elite level of the game, and we are very pleased to have agreed a deal to bring him to Wolves.
"Since the very beginning, Julen has been our number one choice to manage Wolves, and we look forward to welcoming him and his team when they join us in the coming weeks."
Wolves host Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday before taking on Leeds United in the EFL Cup in midweek, with a home match against Arsenal rounding off their league fixtures before the World Cup.
LeBron James has spoken out against former team-mate Kyrie Irving, making it clear he does not condone his behaviour.
The Brooklyn Nets point guard has been issued a five-game suspension by his team for posting a documentary featuring anti-semitic material on Twitter, and subsequently falling short of apologising until after he was banned.
Irving has been widely criticised for his actions, with Nike terminating their relationship with the 30-year-old, while his fellow Nets star Kevin Durant believes the entire process has been "unnecessary".
James, who has long been one of the NBA's vocal leaders on social issues, is disappointed with what he has seen from his former Cleveland Cavaliers team-mate.
"It's simple. Me, personally, I don't condone any hate to any kinds, any race, to Jewish communities, to black communities, to Asian communities. You guys know where I stand," he said after the Los Angeles Lakers' loss to the Utah Jazz on Friday.
"I believe what Kyrie did caused some harm to a lot of people. He has since, today, or was it yesterday, apologised. But he caused some harm, and I think it's unfortunate.
"I don't stand on the position to harm people when it comes to your voice or your platform or anything.
"So, it doesn't matter what colour your skin is, how tall you are, what position you're in. If you are promoting or soliciting or saying harmful things to any community that harm people, then I don't respect it. I don't condone it."
The Nets did not struggle in Irving's absence on Friday, as they claimed a 128-86 win over the Washington Wizards, overseen by interim coach Jacque Vaughn.
Even the most ardent Arsenal supporter would struggle to convince you they could have envisaged their team making such a brilliant start to the season.
The idea of the Gunners being title challengers in the context of a disappointing end to the previous campaign, in which they were pipped for fourth by fierce rivals Tottenham having looked certainties for Champions League qualification, was pretty fanciful – even accounting for the shrewd signings of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko from rivals Manchester City.
And yet, here we are – just two Premier League games to play before the top flight signs off for the World Cup break and Arsenal lead the way by two points from City having lost only once in 12 league outings.
Lovers of caveats will of course point out the blindingly obvious…we're still only in November. And indeed Arsenal do have questions to answer. Is their squad deep enough to take City all the way? Are they strong enough defensively to remain contenders?
But their success so far has been built on two longer term squad members, namely in the form of local favourite Bukayo Saka and the Brazilian flair of Gabriel Martinelli and they perhaps hold the key to sustaining their present position.
Their roles in this Arsenal team have been increasingly important with Arteta having to shuffle his pack following the exits of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette in January and June respectively.
The addition of Jesus has added significant star quality of course, but there is little doubt Saka and Martinelli have stepped up a gear so far this term.
Martinelli making his mark
In the North Bank at Emirates Stadium in August, Arsenal fans' chants were predominantly directed towards Hale End graduates Saka and Emile Smith Rowe.
But Smith Rowe's rise to first-team star has been tempered a little this term due to injuries, and Martinelli has grasped his opportunity at consistent playing time.
While the Brazilian made 29 Premier League appearances last season, he only completed 90 minutes on nine occasions and was subbed off in 11 of his 21 starts and received a red card against Wolves in February.
This season, Martinelli has started all 12 of Arsenal's league matches and has played the entirety of the game on eight occasions.
That has resulted in a significant improvement in front of goal, with Martinelli netting five times in 12 matches and sitting just one shy of the six-goal tally he achieved last term, adding two assists to boot.
Martinelli's involvement is up there with the best in the Premier League, standing eighth overall for the most involvements in attacking sequences (67) and ranking second in that regard for Arsenal, behind only Jesus (90).
Saka coming of age
On the opposing side, Arsenal continue to deploy Saka to expert effect, with the England international now in his fourth year as a regular fixture within the Gunners' ranks and showing real maturity at the age of 21.
While appearances have been plentiful, it has taken time for Saka to be integrated fully into his natural role after first making a breakthrough filling in at left-back, then featuring on the left-side of the attack.
Now in his favoured role on the right, Saka has shown his consistency with nine goal involvements in 12 matches (four goals, five assists). Only once in the past nine matches has Saka not registered a goal or an assist in the Premier League.
Managing Saka will be Arteta's biggest challenge given the amount of football he has played in the past four years and it is something that is clearly being considered, with Saka subbed off in seven of his 12 appearances this term.
Eyes will be cast towards the World Cup and Saka's important role for Gareth Southgate's side, which Arsenal fans may not find comfortable to watch given the injury risk to their star man – something that highlights the Gunners' need for depth beyond their first XI.
More to come
Settling into the side alongside Jesus, Arsenal's fluid front-three is one that is attracting envy across the Premier League and, worryingly for their opponents, the Gunners trio are still not at the peak of their powers.
For all their brilliance, neither Saka or Martinelli have quite managed to craft a deadly relationship with Jesus just yet – with Saka and Jesus yet to combine for an assist this season, while Jesus has laid on one for Martinelli.
In comparison, Martinelli has assisted Saka once, with two assists in the opposing direction. Last season, the pair did not combine for an assist.
The chances have been there, with Martinelli and Jesus combining for nine opportunities, while Saka and the Brazilian have combined for five. Improving those numbers will increase the chances of the assist tally also trending upwards.
The performances of Martin Odegaard, Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey have had a major influence on the attack, but if Saka and Martinelli can continue to improve their own output then Arsenal can continue to provide the role of unlikely challengers and, who knows, perhaps even end a wait for title glory that stretches back to 2004.
Such is the instantaneous nature of social media that one miss, one innocuous incident can see a player written off as a "fraud" or "finished".
It's up to every one of us how much importance we tie to those individual comments. Maybe they're jokes, maybe they're serious. But when you see thousands of likes or retweets on them, you get a picture of how widespread these quick judgements are, and in that sense it doesn't really matter if they were in jest or not.
This isn't to say we didn't use to be like this, the difference is now many of us have at our fingertips an outlet that reaches thousands of people within seconds.
Darwin Nunez came in for such treatment in pre-season. During a meaningless friendly against Manchester United, the Uruguayan missed a big chance and quickly became the target of ridicule on social media.
Granted, he had recently been signed for a lot of money, but the hysteria – given the game had nothing riding on it – was remarkable. For what it's worth, he scored four in one match nine days later.
Since then, a lot of column inches have been dedicated to Nunez, which is a bit fairer now the season's in full flow.
One thing many agree about is how the striker appears to be one of the most chaotic footballers in existence, but this shouldn't cloud what he's doing well. He's raw, but if you scrape away the surface, the signs for Nunez and Liverpool are very promising.
Untapped potential
Jurgen Klopp hit the nail on the head last week when talking about Nunez's potential. In his eyes, the 23-year-old potentially has an "incredible" ceiling, but he acknowledged there was still so much work for the striker to put in that it was unclear how good he'll eventually become.
"Nobody knows, he doesn't know. Nobody knows, there is a lot [of potential] and it is so exciting, but he has to stay fit, he has to be available all the time," Klopp said. "That's all important in the life of a professional football player. We have to work on all different areas. Then, the potential is incredible. It's not only speed, the attitude is really good, he is a real worker.
"Again, I tell you – and I know there are some people out there who think, 'Technically, not sure, first touch...' – it is incredible. That he doesn't bring it on the pitch all the time, the first touch might be here or there sometimes, is nothing to do with technique, it is just a bit too late, awareness, orientation and all these kind of things, but it is all possible to develop and to learn. That's where we are at, it's really exciting, but where it can go, I have no idea."
There was always going to be scrutiny for Nunez because of the transfer fee, but would there have been as much were it not for Erling Haaland's ridiculous start? Probably not, as they were brought in around the same time and both considered by many as the so-called final pieces of the puzzle for their respective teams.
As the past few months have shown, Haaland is a phenomenon, that's not up for debate. But Nunez taking a little more time to truly settle doesn't make him any less promising than he was deemed at Benfica.
In fact, you could argue his output has exceeded expectations at this point.
Darwin's evolution
"His numbers are incredible, to be absolutely honest," Klopp also said of Nunez last week. "If you speak about xGs [expected goals], I am pretty sure his xGs are pretty high as well. He had a few chances which he missed, but he scored as well. He is involved in a lot of finishing moments, a lot of things."
Klopp is correct here – the data firmly backs him up. While Nunez's tally of three Premier League goals doesn't sound much, we shouldn't forget he's already served a three-match ban for getting sent off against Crystal Palace. His record of 0.6 goals every 90 minutes is bettered by only seven players.
With that in mind, Nunez's 432 Premier League minutes is fairly low, but he's managed to pack a lot of action into that limited period – hence the "chaotic" appraisal earlier.
He ranks inside the top 10 for goal involvements per 90 minutes (0.8) and minutes per goal (144), but it's in the shooting metrics where Nunez's productivity really shines through.
No one is registering more attempts on a per-90-minute basis than Nunez (6.7), while only Haaland (2.6) is getting more shots on target than the Uruguay forward (2.5) each game.
But perhaps crucially, and back to Klopp's point, his non-penalty xG (per 90) is 0.76, only fractionally behind Haaland's league-best 0.81.
Of course, the issue here is Nunez isn't finishing as many chances as the average player would be expected to given the quality of the openings, while Haaland has been exceptionally ruthless with his opportunities.
But it would be more concerning if he wasn't getting chances at all.
Nunez's struggles could be explained by any number of factors such as confidence, adaptation, the roles he's being asked to play, maybe even a desperate need to impress, and that might explain some of his more erratic decision-making.
But the expectation is that with time and composure Nunez's figures will eventually level up with his xG. On the evidence of his attributes until now, when they do, Liverpool will have an exceptional striker on their hands.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
