Darwin Nunez likened to Tyrannosaurus Rex as he spearheads Liverpool turnaround against Fulham with two quickfire assists
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Darwin Nunez was a crucial second-half substitute for Liverpool as he assisted two goals to turn their Carabao Cup tie against Fulham on its head.
The 24-year-old was named on the bench by Jurgen Klopp for their Carabao Cup semi-final first leg clash at Anfield, but made a quick impact when brought on in the 56th minute in their 2-1 win.
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Nunez came off the bench to help guide Liverpool in frontCredit: Getty
Fulham took the lead in the first-half when Willian latched onto some poor Liverpool defending and netted in front of the Kop End.
Klopp’s side continued to look sluggish into the second-half, but Nunez’s appearance off the bench made a world of difference.
In the 68th minute, he laid the ball off to Curtis Jones, who fired in for the equaliser with the help of a heavy deflection.
Just minutes later, Nunez played a fine pass into the path of Cody Gakpo and the Dutchman steered home to put Liverpool in front.
Nunez also had a number of chances to get on the scoresheet himself, forcing Leno into two fantastic saves.
The impact of Nunez was likened to a dinosaur in Jurassic Park as talkSPORT’s Sam Matterface said on commentary: “It’s like a Jurassic Park movie where the Tyrannosaurus Rex enters the fray, he charges around… and Fulham just go into panic mode.”
Nunez has featured in all four of Liverpool’s Carabao Cup matches this season, with appearances coming off the bench in three of those.
His assist tally for the season so far has now reached ten in all competitions, with his eight goals adding to 18 total contributions.
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Jones and Gakpo both netted from the Uruguayan’s passesCredit: Getty
The 24-year-old’s introduction injected a new lease of life for the Reds in what was mostly a poor performance.
Liverpool looked slow on the attack before Nunez was brought on, but Fulham were equally as poor as they missed a series of chances to double their lead.
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Klopp’s side now hold a 2-1 aggregate lead in the semi-final, with the second leg being played at Craven Cottage in two weeks’ time.
They seemingly have one foot in the final, with the winner of the tie playing either Chelsea or Middlesbrough at Wembley in February.