Man United found a rather bizarre stumbling block in their pursuit of Darwin Nunez, as food poisoning scuppered their chances of signing the Uruguayan.
Nunez joined United’s traditional rivals Liverpool in a deal worth an initial £64 million. However, if he achieves certain targets, the fee could increase to £85 million.
It is a big fee for the 22-year-old, who was Benfica’s top scorer last season with 34 goals in 41 appearances. But boss Jurgen Klopp feels that the Uruguayan can live up to the price tag in the future.
“Darwin is a wonderful player,” the Liverpool manager told Liverpoolfc.com. “Already really good but so much potential to get even better. That’s why it’s so exciting, to be honest. His age, his desire, his hunger to be even better than he currently is. His belief in our project and what we are looking to do as a club.”
One of Europe’s most promising attackers, Klopp believes that he is a good fit for Anfield.
“He has all the pieces we look for,” continued the German. “He can set a tempo, he brings energy, he can threaten space from central and wide areas. A player who is aggressive and dynamic with his movement and plays without fear.
“I know he will excite our supporters.”
In contrast, Manchester United did not get their man. They are yet to make a signing that signals the start of the Erik ten Hag rebuild.
Now, reports claim that an unfortunate situation prevented Man United from fully entering the race for Darwin Nunez.
Food poisoning stops Man United pursuit of Darwin Nunez
Before Liverpool submitted a formal bid for the now-former Benfica forward, Darwin Nunez received great interest from the Red Devils. However, United did not want an all-out bidding war for Nunez, so they shifted their attention elsewhere.
According to The Mirror, Nunez was “not a top priority target” for the Old Trafford side. Therefore, they allowed Liverpool a free run at brokering a deal. But The Athletic suggests that United’s interest was a lot stronger than they let on.
A report from The Athletic claims that Man United officials travelled to Portugal before Benfica’s Champions League quarter-final against Liverpool. Here, they were going to discuss a potential deal for Darwin Nunez.
Unfortunately, an untimely illness intervened. Benfica’s President, Manuel Rui Costa, apparently got food poisoning from his birthday party. This forced a cancellation of the meeting. As a result, the incident left United officials unimpressed and less keen on the signing.
In addition, the delayed arrival of Erik ten Hag disrupted any potential move. The Dutchman was a fan of Nunez, having faced him with Ajax earlier in the season. Crucially, Ten Hag joined United at the end of 2021/22 – by which point Liverpool were already in the driving seat.
Sky Sports claim that Nunez always wanted a move to Anfield, suggesting that United may not have been able to make a transfer happen anyway. Despite this, United fans and the new manager may wonder what could have been.
Featured image credit: Getty
