Robin Bairner believes Darwin Nunez gives Liverpool the edge over Man City

Saturday’s Community Shield was billed to be a clash between the summer signings - Erling Haaland and Darwin Nunez. The showdown turned out to be a dream start for Liverpool’s new Uruguayan, who bagged the Reds’ final goal in a 3-1 win, but proved to be a big let-down for City and Haaland.

From the beginning, it seemed likely to be all about the Norway star. After all, he was the only one of the pair to start the match and had arrived in England boasting a ratio of nearly a goal-per-game at Borussia Dortmund.

But in sport it is often less about how you start and more about how you finish. In both senses of the word, Nunez came to the fore. After arriving off the bench with 30 minutes remaining, he was a bright presence in attack and in stoppage time stooped to head Andy Robertson’s header into the goal to seal Liverpool’s success.

While there is danger in reading too much into the Community Shield, a competition thought of as little more than a pre-season friendly with a trophy presentation, Jurgen Klopp’s side sent out a message.

Indeed, they were so comfortably superior to Man City on the day, it would have many critics reassessing just where the balance of power lies in the Premier League as the dawn of the 2022-23 season approaches. 

Reds up to their old tricks

As they have so often done, Liverpool have found a player in Nunez who has hit the ground running. This cannot overshadow doubts over his long-term performance, but backed by the track record of the Anfield side to get things right in the transfer market, it is unsurprising that they are bullish with confidence over their new centre forward.

This is particularly the case given how his performance contrasted so abruptly with Haaland’s. Hailed as the game’s next great forward, the former Dortmund player was persistently clumsy with his first touch and set a close-range sitter skimming over the bar that would at least have tempered his opening-game critics.  

Where Nunez seemed to slip easily into the Liverpool system, Haaland abraded with City’s. Early in the second half, on a rare dangerous counter, he strayed offside, checked his run and abruptly disrupted the attack by taking up the room Kevin De Bruyne was moving into with the ball. The Belgian was left visibly frustrated.

“He fought a lot, made the movements. It's good for him to see the reality of [a] new country, new league, but he was there,” Pep Guardiola explained after the match.

“He didn't score. Another day he will score. He has incredible quality and he will do it. He has an incredible sense. He is going to help us a lot. He had the chances, he was there. Nothing changed.”

Shift in momentum

Except something has changed. The momentum in this most close-fought of rivalries has subtly shifted in favour of Liverpool, not simply because of the result, but because of their performance and the manner of their success.

These two sides, remember, were differentiated by just a single point last season. The margins of success and failure at the top of the Premier League can be defined by one missed chance, one poor match or, more pertinently, a slow start to the season.

While Liverpool and Nunez look like the well-drilled unit that won 16 of 18 matches last season to almost chase down the eventual champions, Guardiola’s troupe look rather more dysfunctional and are suddenly approaching the campaign having been put on the back foot.

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