“Pro” victory, bizarre bookings and Nunez the mystery – Liverpool 2-0 Bologna – Liverpool FC

The mystery surrounding Darwin Nunez remains at Liverpool after he struggled to assert his authority in the 2-0 win over Bologna, a game that had its ups and downs for Arne Slot’s side.

Anfield welcomed their return to the Champions League with a win on Wednesday evening. Alexis Mac Allister and Mohamed Salah scored the goals, adding another three points to Liverpool’s tally.

“Overall a good result, but I wouldn’t use the word ‘pleasing’ myself,” said Slot after the game, after his team kicked off Bologna.

Here, Joanna Durkan (@JoannaDurkan_) and Sam Millne (@sam_millne), who were both at Anfield, discuss the recent win and the enigma that Nunez represents.

The good…

JOANNA: In the run-up to the game I was able to go into the city and there were a lot of Bologna fans there, the atmosphere there was really good.

The sun was shining, hallelujah, and you couldn’t have asked for a better day after what felt like endless rain in the UK!

My first game at Anfield this season and it had its moments. Mohamed Salah’s goal and assist were simply beautiful!

I had a pretty good view of both of them and you knew almost as soon as they came out of the boot that it was going to end badly.

Ryan Gravenberch was once again a whole other level and it was nice to see him in full swing with my own eyes and not from the angles shown to us by the TV director. There is also a lot of talk about him in the stands, and rightly so!

SAM: As the evenings get colder, fans will be looking to enjoy their last pre-game drinks without the big coat until 2025.

Most of the conversations revolved around how many players we would win with, such was the confidence that Slot instilled in the fans. In the end it didn’t turn out that way, as Vincenzo Italiano was now obviously making his mark on Bologna, playing some good football at times.

However, the Reds were solid and although Slot would have wished the second team had arrived sooner, Liverpool ultimately ended the game relatively comfortably.

I think the performance is best described as “professional”.

The bad…

JOANNA: That the price of water at Anfield Road has risen from £2 to £2.20.

Otherwise, the referee was shocking. I don’t know what he saw because it wasn’t what actually happened, he just blew his whistle whenever he felt like it.

Some truly bizarre decisions and the yellow card for Ibou summed it up. What was he thinking? At least where I sat in the upper main stand there was a good atmosphere.

Finally, our final ball was missed far too often and some passes from the back gave Bologna some confidence – two things that Liverpool really need to work on in the future.

Konate’s reaction to receiving a yellow card for no reason. ?pic.twitter.com/5f1e893zYw

– Samuel (@SamueILFC) October 2, 2024

SAM: As Joanna said, I really couldn’t wrap my head around some of the bookings, particularly Konate.

Ultimately it didn’t matter much on the night, but it could still have consequences should he receive further yellow cards.

From my position in lower Anfield it was clear that Ibou was the victim and not the perpetrator in this scenario. The referee behaved like a teacher who doesn’t know the perpetrator and therefore punishes the class!

That being said, it was difficult to complain about too much that night.

And Darwin Nunez struggled at Anfield. Can you imagine him fitting under Arne Slot?

SAM: I feel like we haven’t really made any progress in the Darwin debate since Klopp left.

In slot, he still brings the same advantages and disadvantages that have made him such a difficult player to coach since his signing in 2022.

Personally, I don’t think his goalscoring record is the problem, but rather how he fits into the team as a striker overall – he and Jota are very different players.

After the game, it was interesting to hear Slot say that he made the right runs but his teammates couldn’t find him, which was perhaps a sign that the coach was relatively happy with Nunez’s performance.

JOANNA: He’s a real enigma, Darwin. The ability is there, but we need it consistently and with more confidence that it will perform in the big moments.

It seemed like they were pulling his hair over and over again, but they just wanted him to get stronger in the competition and be the safe player.

It’s hard to imagine him actually pushing Diogo for a starting spot. He’s an option if rotation is needed or an injury forces slot’s hand, but otherwise he hasn’t done enough for me.

He hasn’t played much football lately, and you can give him some leniency for that, but the lack of chaos in Slot’s system doesn’t reflect what Nunez is naturally gifted at.

He makes some good runs that aren’t always rewarded by his teammates, but the offside ruling out a good finish sums him up: it really wasn’t difficult to stay in the line.

I want him to succeed so much and support is no problem. Anfield has sung his name willingly but it will take more than that.