Darwin Nunez saw red on his first Premier League start for Liverpool, with a moment of madness against Crystal Palace meaning that a £64 million ($77m) striker must now serve an untimely suspension. The Uruguay international lost his cool when tangling with Joachim Andersen, resulting in him headbutting the Eagles defender.
The 23-year-old has become the first player to be sent off for violent conduct during Jurgen Klopp’s memorable reign at Anfield, but how many games will he be banned for and who are those fixtures against? GOAL takes a look…
How many games will Darwin Nunez be banned for?
Any straight red card for violent conduct in the Premier League results in a three-game ban.
Nunez is now counting the cost of his actions against Palace, with Klopp admitting that he will be speaking to a big-money summer signing about his display of petulance.
Next Match
The Reds boss has said: “I will speak to him of course.
“I wanted to see the situation first. I didn’t know what happened. I saw Andersen on the floor and Darwin walking away. That was my view. So I asked our guys, I saw it and yes it was a red card, the wrong reaction.
“Andersen wanted that and he got it, but Darwin made a mistake.”
Klopp added: “A little provocation here and there, and definitely the wrong reaction. I can’t deny that.
“He will learn from that. Unfortunately he will have a few games to do so, which is not cool for us, even less with our specific situation, but it is what it is.”
Who do Liverpool play during Darwin Nunez’s suspension?
The Reds have taken just two points from their opening two games of the 2022-23 campaign against Fulham and Palace, and will now be without a highly-rated No.9 through to the end of August.
In that time they are due to face arch-rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford, while welcoming Bournemouth and Newcastle to Merseyside.
Game | Date |
|---|---|
Man Utd vs Liverpool | August 22 |
Liverpool vs Bournemouth | August 27 |
Liverpool vs Newcastle | August 31 |
While Nunez is guaranteed to sit out three games for Liverpool, Reds legend Jamie Carragher has suggested that he could be missing for even longer as Klopp works on fully integrating a Premier League rookie into his plans.
The former defender told Sky Sports after witnessing a reckless red card: “The issue wasn’t tonight, the problem is how long it will be until he is back in the team as he’ll likely only be on the bench after the suspension to get up to speed so it could be five or six weeks until we see him back in the Liverpool starting XI.”
Klopp’s men are due to take in a derby date at Goodison Park with neighbours Everton on September 3, while Wolves visit Anfield a week later and the Reds will head to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea on September 18.