Darwin Nunez's Liverpool Future in Doubt as AC Milan Eyes Move

Darwin Nunez’s Liverpool return is slipping off the table – and Italy may yet offer his way back from the wilderness.

The Uruguay striker, once the record signing at Anfield, is facing a brutal reset of his career after a nightmare year at Al-Hilal. He left Liverpool last summer for an initial £46 million and a staggering £400,000-per-week contract in Saudi Arabia. On paper, it looked like a superstar move. On the pitch, it has fallen apart.

Since February, Nunez has barely kicked a ball in meaningful action. His situation worsened when Al-Hilal completed a deal for Karim Benzema, a signing that pushed Nunez completely to the fringes. He was de-listed from the domestic squad, effectively frozen out at club level while still in his prime years.

All this while he represents Uruguay at the FIFA World Cup, carrying the weight of a stalled club career into the biggest stage.

Bielsa’s concern and a player in decline

Back home, even his national team boss has taken notice. Marcelo Bielsa is reported to have harboured doubts about Nunez for some time, with concerns that the forward has “physically deteriorated” during his long spell of inactivity.

For a striker whose game was once built on relentless running, raw power and explosive movement, that is a damning assessment. It also underlines why his future now looks so uncertain.

Al-Hilal, sensing the stalemate, are believed to be willing to tear up his lucrative deal to clear the decks. That could make Nunez available either on a free transfer or for a heavily reduced fee, a remarkable drop from the sum Liverpool received only a year ago.

Yet despite the cut-price opportunity, the outgoing Premier League champions are not convinced. Reports suggest Liverpool have little appetite to take a gamble on a player whose form and fitness have both been called into question.

The door at Anfield, for now, appears closed.

Milan circle as Liverpool step back

With Liverpool stepping away, another European giant is moving into position. Ruben Amorim’s AC Milan are now weighing up a move for the 27-year-old, sensing an opportunity in a distressed market.

“There have already been some contacts with players attending the World Cup, one of whom is Darwin Nunez,” a report on Milan Vibes states, hinting that early groundwork has begun.

The numbers, though, are a problem. Nunez’s current salary – around €2 million per month – sits miles outside Milan’s wage structure. For a club that has worked hard to bring order and discipline to its payroll, those figures are unsustainable.

So the negotiation becomes a test of how badly Nunez wants to reboot his career in Europe, and how far Al-Hilal are prepared to go to get his salary off their books.

Two paths to San Siro

According to the same report, Milan see two possible routes.

• The first is a permanent transfer at a significantly reduced fee, a deal that would allow the Rossoneri to set a new, more modest salary for Nunez. That structure could slot into their existing wage cap – especially if Rafael Leao, currently occupying the club’s highest salary bracket, were to leave.
• The second option is a loan move, with Al-Hilal continuing to shoulder a portion of Nunez’s wages. That scenario would ease the immediate financial strain on Milan but is described as “highly unlikely”, reflecting the reality that Saudi clubs are not in the habit of subsidising European revivals.

Still, the fact that these options are even on the table tells its own story. A year ago, Nunez was a marquee sale. Now, he is a distressed asset in need of a rescue act.

A career at a crossroads

This is not the first time Milan have hovered around Nunez. The forward was linked with the club during his Liverpool spell and is also reported to regret missing out on a switch to Serie A with Napoli last summer.

Those sliding doors moments now loom large. Instead of settling into a leading role in Italy, he has spent months sidelined in Saudi Arabia, his sharpness fading, his reputation dented.

Now comes the hard question: does a move to Milan offer him the reset he desperately needs, or has the damage of the last year already cut too deep?

For club and player alike, the next decision will define far more than a transfer window. It will decide whether Darwin Nunez can still be the striker Europe once expected him to become.