'I like him': Souness says he's a huge fan of Liverpool player who can ensure a top four finish if he improves

By Sam Preston

Graeme Souness claims Darwin Nunez and Cody Gakpo can fire Liverpool into the top four come the end of the season.

Souness told the Mail he is a fan of Nunez, and admires his work-rate and persistence to get into goalscoring positions.

The Scot acknowledged that Darwin needs to be more clinical in front of goal but said that the 23-year-old and new-boy Gakpo can earn Champions League qualification.

Souness says he’s a fan of Nunez

Souness wrote: “It is staggering that Liverpool were 15 points off top going into this round of fixtures.

“The title is gone, but they will still make the top four if Cody Gakpo hits the ground running and gets goals, along with Darwin Nunez.

“I retain faith in Nunez. He has not got the goals his work-rate deserves and he has been nowhere near clinical enough.

“But I like a striker who comes back for more and puts themselves in positions to miss.”

Nunez looks like an incredibly raw talent who needs time and patience to get up to the level Liverpool need him to be at consistently.

The comparison with Erling Haaland’s instant impact over at Manchester City is not favourable but Nunez has to keep working hard and the goals should come.

He has the faith of his manager and now another player in Gakpo to share the attacking workload with and form what Liverpool fans will hope is a devastating attack.

The race for the top four looks intense this season, with Newcastle putting a real spanner in the works and Liverpool have a lot of work to do.