Plenty of eyebrows were raised when it emerged during the January transfer window that Liverpool had rejected a significant bid from Al-Nassr for Darwin Nunez.

Many Reds fans may well have been happy to see the back of the Uruguayan after two and a half underwhelming years, but Arne Slot had other ideas and was clearly keen to keep his squad together for the second half of the season, with the Reds pursuing Premier League, Champions League, Carabao Cup and, at the time, FA Cup glory.

Had it been a a case of now or never to sell Nunez, then it might have been a different story, but Liverpool believes there will be a strong market for the striker during the summer transfer window, when it is more likely that he will leave the club.



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Liverpool saw the benefits of the decision to keep Nunez almost straight away as he emerged as a substitute against Brentford to score two decisive stoppage-time goals in January

While Nunez is not a part of Arne Slot's first-choice XI, he is very good player to have in reserve — as those goals showed — and his presence ensures that the Reds will not be caught short up front if injuries strike.

The same cannot be said of Arsenal's attack, and that was evident as Mikel Arteta's men toiled against one of the worst teams in the Premier League on Saturday

Leicester is likely to be playing Championship football next season but it took the Gunners until the 81st minute to break the Foxes down, and Arteta had to rely on a brace from auxiliary striker Mikel Merino to pick up all three points.

Arsenal went into the season without a prolific scorer and the team's problems have intensified in recent weeks and months, with Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Martinell all out with significant injuries.

Havertz and Jesus, Arsenal's two first-choice strikers, are expected to be sidelined for the remainder of the season with hamstring and knee problems respectively, while Saka and Martinelli are all out with hamstring injuries.

Despite his brace at the King Power Stadium, Merino is unlikely to provide the consistent goals that top teams demand of their strikers, and Mikel Arteta will be wishing he had brought another striker in during the January window.


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