La Liga giants keen on singing Liverpool forward Darwin Nunez: Reports

La Liga giants Atletico Madrid are reportedly keen on a move for Liverpool attacker Darwin Nunez. As reported by Spanish outlet Fichajes.net, the Colchoneros have identified the Uruguay international as a candidate to bolster their attack.

Diego Simeone's side have not been at their best in terms of goalscoring this season, only managing to score 12 goals in eight La Liga outings. They signed Julian Alvarez this summer from Manchester City in a reported £81.8 million deal who has scored just twice in nine appearances.

It has been claimed that the 11-time La Liga champions are considering a move for Darwin Nunez who has struggled for opportunities this season. The 25-year-old has played just 246 minutes of first-team football under Arne Slot this campaign, contributing one goal and one assist.

With the plethora of options at his disposal, Slot has heavily rotated his forward players this season. Nunez has only started two games across competitions under the new Reds manager.

Darwin Nunez joined Liverpool in the summer of 2022 in a reported £85 million deal from Benfica, becoming the club's most expensive signing of all time. However, he has not really been able to live up to his massive price tag, having only scored 34 goals and provided 18 assists in 102 appearances.

The Uruguayan has scored several memorable goals during his time at Liverpool but his finishing has not been consistent. However, his physicality, work rate and pace make him a striker who could become a complete forward in the future making him tailor-made for Diego Simeone's system.

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Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk heaps praise on his defensive partner

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has showered praise on Ibrahima Konate following the Reds' 2-1 win against Wolverhampton Wanderers at the weekend. The France international opened the scoring for Arne Slot's side but made an error leading to Wolves equalizing.

The Reds got their lead back promptly after conceding as Diogo Jota won a penalty which was expertly converted by Mohamed Salah. Following the game, Virgil van Dijk hailed Konate despite the error he committed.

Speaking to the official LFC website, the Netherlands skipper said:

“We need everyone to be at their best. Ibou is an amazing, fantastic player who can still be better. He is defensively solid and was a bit unlucky with the goal that we conceded but the qualities he has, he is outstanding."

The former Southampton defender added:

“He is learning and he is growing, getting better and looking after himself much better, to be ready every three days – and also he has a young player behind him in Jarell [Quansah] who is also a good one, so they keep pushing each other.”

Konate has been pretty solid for Liverpool after joining the club in 2021 from RB Leipzig in a reported £36 million deal. The Frenchman has made 97 appearances for the Merseyside giants, helping them win four trophies in the process.