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Liverpool was forced to let go of mercurial striker Darwin Nunez to Saudi Arabian club Al-Hillal over the summer to accommodate the transfer of Swedish international Alexander Isak (and French forward Hugo Ekitike).
The Uruguayan international was sold for an initial $88 million fee with further add-ons, a steep drop from the $113.6 million the Reds handed Benfica for Nunez's services in 2022.
He started the preseason strongly for his new club before struggling with a knee injury for much of the early part of the 2025/26 campaign. He's rebounded nicely upon his return, scoring the opening goal in a 2-1 victory over Al-Fateh over the weekend.
He's featured 10 times on the season: nine for his club, and once for his country. Nunez has five goals and two assists in six Saudi Pro League matches, including a three-goal contribution against Al-Ettifaq in October.
He's featured twice in the AFC Champions League for Al-Hillal, scoring once in 57 minutes of action. His club sits top of the AFC Champions League table through four games despite playing one less fixture than more of their opponents.
Al-Hilal recruited two-time UEFA Champions League finalist manager Simone Inzaghi to Saudi Arabia in an ambitious coup this summer and swiftly bought a slew of talented players for the Italian.
The club features a talented lineup including Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Malcolm, Ruben Neves, Theo Hernandez, Bono, Kalidou Koulibaly, Marcos Leonardo, and captain Salem Al-Dawsari.
Isak has had a nightmare start to his Liverpool career after earning an £125 million ($169 million) move from Newcastle to Merseyside over the summer.
He became the first player in club history to lose each of his first five starts. Not only is Isak without a league goal, but he also has just seven shots — including one on target — in 318 minutes.
Fellow import Ekitike is off to a slightly stronger start, having scored five in 13 in all competitions while earning his first call-up to the French national team.
Nunez finished his Liverpool career with 40 goals in 143 games. "The Uruguayan's three-year spell with the Reds concludes after he finalised a switch to the Saudi Pro League side today," Liverpool said in a statement once his transfer was confirmed.
"Everybody at the club would like to thank Darwin for his contributions and wish him and his family all the best for the future."
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