Super-sub Darwin Nunez gets 8.9 in Liverpool’s biggest win of the season

Darwin Nunez rightly received the highest rating in Liverpool’s thrilling 2-0 win away to Brentford, in one of his biggest contributions for the club.

The Reds faced a massive game in west London on Saturday, looking to put pressure on Arsenal in the Premier League title race.

A frustrating 90 minutes saw Liverpool wasteful in front of goal, missing some big chances, with Brentford a threat on the counter-attack.

With all hope seemingly lost, it was left to Nunez to bury two lethal finishes in stoppage time, sealing the Reds’ most important win of the season so far.

Here we compare our player ratings with those of the Liverpool Echo, GOAL, FotMob and TIA’s readers.

If ever a substitute deserved Man of the Match, it was Nunez (8.9) on Saturday!

The Uruguayan has come in for plenty of stick this season, some of which has been merited, but this was the most invaluable of cameos.

Ian Doyle of the Echo hailed “two excellent finishes in the closing moments.”

Sean Walsh felt that Nunez took being called ‘just a sh*t Andy Carroll’ by Brentford fans “personally,” silencing the home fans emphatically.

Of those who started, it was yet another formidable performance by Virgil van Dijk (7.7), who was the Reds’ standout defender.

The Dutchman made the joint-most clearances (five) for Liverpool, per FotMob, with TIA’s James Nalton saying he showed a “great example of his ability to still defend on the turn” when thwarting Bryan Mbeumo.

Trent Alexander-Arnold (7.6) was next up, assisting Nunez for the first goal and showing great desire throughout.

Walsh said that the vice-captain both defended with “diligence” and effectively “tucked into midfield when Liverpool were dominating the ball.”

The lowest Reds score of the afternoon went to Luis Diaz (5.5), who endured another tough outing in his new central attacking role.