Former Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez looks set to have his long wait for a return to the pitch come to an end this week. Nunez left the Reds last summer to complete a permanent move to Al Hilal in the Saudi Pro League.
Nunez helped Liverpool win the Premier League title in his final season at Liverpool, scoring seven goals across 47 appearances in all competitions before joining Al Hilal in a deal worth £46 million.
Since leaving Liverpool, Nunez has endured an up-and-down spell in Saudi Arabia, with the striker unregistered by Al Hilal last month following the signing of Karim Benzema.
This meant that Nunez has not been able to feature in Saudi Pro League games since the start of February, and has been restricted to just two appearances in the AFC Champions League, of which the registration rules are different to the Saudi Arabian top flight.
Nunez’s most recent appearance for Al Hilal was on February 16 in a 2-1 win over Al Wahda in the AFC Champions League, where the former Liverpool striker scored both goals.
Al Hilal were scheduled to face Qatar-based club Al Sadd in the last-16 of the competition earlier this month but both legs were postponed due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
Now, Nunez has been called up to the Uruguay squad that will see the striker be in contention to feature for his country in friendly matches against England and Algeria over the next few days.
Since leaving Liverpool, Nunez has seen his market value steadily decrease.
When Nunez left the Reds, the striker was valued on Transfermarkt as £39m. Now, that valuation has decreased to £30m, despite the Uruguay international scoring nine goals for his new club this term.
Nunez has seen his future become the subject of intense speculation during recent months, particularly during the January transfer window, where there were rumours of a potential exit from Al Hilal.
Reports claimed that Nunez was attracting interest from Fenerbahce as the striker was linked with a return to Europe just months after his departure from Merseyside.
Nunez will be back on English soil this week as Uruguay face England in a pre-World Cup friendly on Friday evening at Wembley Stadium
This could be Nunez’s first appearance in more than a month, where the former Liverpool striker will be determined to get on the score sheet for his country.
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