Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp remains "completely convinced" by Darwin Nunez after the club-record signing was criticised for his performance against Manchester United.
Nunez joined Liverpool from Benfica in a deal potentially worth up to £85million (€100.5m) last month and made his first appearance in Tuesday's 4-0 loss in Bangkok.
The Uruguay international played the final half an hour of the contest and missed a glorious opportunity to open his account for the club when blazing over the bar late on.
That led to many already questioning the big-money signing, with footage of his miss shared widely on social media platforms.
But Klopp has no doubt that Nunez, signed effectively as a replacement for Sadio Mane after he joined Bayern Munich, will have a big impact in Liverpool's star-studded forward line.
"I'm not worried at all," he said at a news conference on Thursday ahead of facing Crystal Palace in Singapore.
"The general judgement [on Nunez] is absolutely nil interest [to us]. It will be like this and we all know it.
"It's kind of a game or a joke for some people to pick out some situations where a player's not doing well. That's only a game from [fans of] other clubs, which is normal.
"Our fans probably do [the same] with signings of Manchester United. We cannot take this seriously."
Nunez scored 48 goals in 85 games for Benfica in all competitions and averaged 1.2 goals every 90 minutes in the Portuguese Primeira Liga last season.
When only factoring in non-penalty goals, Nunez averaged exactly a goal a game in the Portuguese top flight – the best return of any player to have played at least 1,000 minutes across the Primeira Liga, LaLiga, Serie A, the Bundesliga and Premier League last season.
He also had the highest conversion rate of all players with 55+ non-penalty shots in the 2021-22 campaign (27.2 per cent).
That explains why Liverpool spent so big to sign the 23-year-old, but Klopp does not want supporters to focus too much on his price tag.
"The only real important thing is how I judge the situation for the player and I couldn't be more calm – completely convinced about his potential," the German said.
"And actually, what our people – all Liverpool supporters in the whole world – should know is that new players need time and get time.
"We should be the first ones to delete the fee we paid [from our thinking]. Just delete it – it's not important.
"It's like this with strikers. He missed a chance and then there are some nervous people going, 'oh my god, he missed a chance' – I can promise you it will not be the last."
Nunez is expected to make his second Liverpool appearance in Friday's friendly with fellow Premier League side Palace.
Klopp added: "We do absolutely everything to not only see the things we saw from him at Benfica – from there, we go [further].
"Again, it is my responsibility to help Darwin fulfil his full potential and I'm completely calm. I think, with half a football brain, you don't doubt the potential of Darwin Nunez."
Dyche 'should be in the hat' to replace Southgate, says Young
Everton head coach Sean Dyche "should be in the hat" to replace outgoing England boss Gareth Southgate, according to Toffees defender Ashley Young.
Southgate announced on Thursday he would be stepping down as the Three Lions' head coach after just under eight years in the role.
The 53-year-old guided England to successive European Championship finals - losing to Italy and Spain respectively - as well as the 2018 World Cup semi-finals, and third place in the 2019 Nations League.
Young was part of the Three Lions side that reached the last four in Russia six years ago, with Southgate bringing him back into the international fold after a four-year absence.
With the search for Southgate's successor now under way, the 39-year-old believes Everton boss Dyche should be in contention.
The former Burnley coach, who has won 90 of his 314 Premier League games in charge, secured top-flight survival on the final day of the 2022-23 season - his first in charge - and, despite facing a points deduction, he steered the Toffees well clear of danger last term.
Young, who paid tribute to Southgate on X, insists his manager's credentials should not be underestimated.
"I don't think even when Gareth Southgate got the job, he [Dyche] was considered to be England manager," he told BBC Sport. "Who can say the gaffer shouldn’t be considered because you don’t know until someone is given that role?
"You have had previous managers like Steve McClaren, Fabio Capello, Roy Hodgson who have come in with a longer career in the game, with more success but have not been able to get the England team to - where I feel - an England team should have been.
"There will be names thrown in the hat left, right and centre, and for the job the manager has done, of course his name should be in the hat.
"When he came in [at Everton], it looked like the club was going to get relegated, and he saved them on the final day of the season.
"He was still able to come in and turn the club around. Last season, if things were different, the position we could have finished in could have been totally different.
"I don't think he is given the praise for what he does and brings to the club. There should be so much more praise for what he has done."
Argentina 1-0 Colombia (aet): Lautaro Martinez's extra-time strike seals Copa America crown
Lautaro Martinez struck an extra-time winner as Argentina edged out Colombia 1-0 to win their second successive Copa America title, despite losing Lionel Messi to injury.
The Inter forward climbed off the bench to break Los Cafeteros' hearts in the 112th minute in Miami, where kick-off had been delayed for 82 minutes due to crowd disruption outside the stadium.
La Albiceleste headed into extra time without Messi, who left the field in tears in the 66th minute after sustaining an ankle injury.
Nevertheless, Lautaro Martinez stepped up in his skipper's absence, slotting past Colombia goalkeeper Camilo Vargas to deliver his nation's record-breaking 16th Copa triumph.
Both sides demonstrated their attacking intent early on. Julian Alvarez fired wide inside the opening 60 seconds, while Jhon Cordoba's volley clipped the outside of the post six minutes later.
Emiliano Martinez held onto a Carlos Cuesta header and, at the other end, Alvaraz inadvertently took the sting out of Lionel Messi's goalbound effort on 20 minutes.
As the final remained in the balance, Jefferson Lerma fired narrowly wide from distance, while Nicolas Tagliafico headed over from a Messi free-kick just before the break.
Colombia created the better opportunities in the early stages of the second half. Santiago Arias drilled wide and Davinson Sanchez headed over from a James Rodriguez corner.
At the other end, Camilo Vargas pushed away Angel Di Maria's effort from a tight angle, before a distraught Messi was forced off injured as the game headed into the final quarter.
Messi's replacement Nicolas Gonzalez thought he had broken the deadlock in the 75th minute, but Argentina were denied by the offside flag as the game headed for extra time.
Gonzalez went close again five minutes into the first period, with Vargas scrambling across to thwart him on the line.
A penalty shootout loomed but, with eight minutes remaining, two Argentina substitutes combined with Giovani Lo Celso feeding Lautaro Martinez, whose composed finish snatched the Copa from under Colombia's noses.
Super sub Lautaro seals Argentina's successful title defence
Having scored from the bench in Argentina's opening two Group A games against Canada and Chile, Lautaro Martinez chose an ideal moment to complete a hat-trick of such strikes in this tournament.
Combining with fellow substitute Lo Celso, the Inter forward netted his fifth goal in the United States to secure the Golden Boot award.
La Albiceleste needed a hero after Messi limped off on a bittersweet night for the skipper.
The first player to feature in five Copa America finals, at 37 years and 20 days, he was also the oldest player to start one in the 21st century.
However, there was to be no match-winning contribution this time in a tournament at which he has been plagued by niggling injuries.
Messi's international future is uncertain but team-mates Di Maria and Nicolas Otamendi - both of whom donned the captain's armband following his withdrawal - sign off with another major international honour under their belts.
Courageous Colombia come up short
While Argentina captured their 16th Copa, Colombia were seeking just the second in their history.
Los Cafeteros claimed their sole triumph on home soil in 2001, notably recording three successive clean sheets in the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.
It looked like Nestor Lorenzo's current crop of players could follow suit 23 years later, as they more than held their own with the reigning Copa and world champions.
But La Albiceleste - the last team to beat them before they embarked on their record-breaking 28-match unbeaten run - proved their nemesis once more, with Lautaro Martinez's strike breaking that streak, and breaking their hearts.
Carragher says England stars froze in Euro 2024 final, refuses to blame Southgate
Jamie Carragher has refused to blame Gareth Southgate for England's Euro 2024 final defeat, saying the Three Lions' star players froze when it mattered most.
England were deservedly beaten 2-1 by Spain in Sunday's Berlin showpiece, with Mikel Oyarzabal scoring the winner after Cole Palmer cancelled out Nico Williams' opener.
The Three Lions struggled for control throughout the game, enjoying just 34.9% of the possession as Spain accumulated 1.77 expected goals (xG) to their 0.55.
It was a familiar sinking feeling for Southgate, who was also criticised for England's failure to maintain control when leading against Croatia in the 2018 World Cup semi-finals and Italy in the Euro 2020 final.
England lost possession 98 times in total and completed only 66.5% of passes in Spain's half, with only Luke Shaw and Bukayo Saka completing over 90% of their passes among the Three Lions' starters.
Despite Southgate facing criticism once more, former defender Carragher refused to lay blame at the manager's door, saying England's best players failed to show up.
Carragher wrote on X: "Sven [Goran Eriksson] played 4-4-2, Fabio [Capello] was too strict, Gareth is too defensive! Funny how it's always on the manager isn't it?
"The fact is our big players didn't turn up in this tournament. And at other tournaments going back years.
"I have no relationship at all with Southgate. I feel he has been cautious from the bench throughout his time, but in this tournament the substitutes have been great.
"There is this idea though that he is holding back an amazing team. Is it any better than 1996, 1998 or 2004?
"International football is not littered with top managers, it's about the players. Ours froze in that first half, allowing the keeper to go long [and] not demanding the ball [and] showing for it."
While Jude Bellingham teed up Palmer's equaliser, he only completed 67.7% of his passes, with only Jordan Pickford (55.6%) faring worse among all 22 starters.
Captain Harry Kane was another to struggle, failing to record a single touch in the Spain area before he was withdrawn for Ollie Watkins midway through the second half.
Across the Euro 2020 and Euro 2024 finals, Kane had just one touch in the opposition's area, one fewer than Jack Grealish had. Grealish played 21 minutes in the 2020 final and did not make the 2024 squad.
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