Manchester United and Arsenal have been told they should have signed Darwin Nunez as their new striker this summer.
Benjamin Sesko looks set to join Man United in a £74million move, while Viktor Gyokeres has signed for Arsenal for £63.7million.
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The two big-money front men are expected to be leading the line for the respective Premier League giants this season.
But did the clubs miss out on an even better signing who was already right in front of them in the top flight?
talkSPORT’s Dean Saunders thinks so, claiming that a move for Liverpool‘s Darwin Nunez should have been made instead.
Nunez has long been tipped to leave Anfield this summer, but Man United and Arsenal were never linked to the Uruguayan – and Saunders believes they missed a trick not going for him.
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Speaking on The Sports Bar, Saunders said: “Nunez, he’s up for grabs. Would you rather not have Nunez than Sesko and Gyokeres?
“They paid a lot of money for them, and I thought, ‘he’s up for grabs.’ I would take a chance on him.”
Saunders added: “He’s got every finish in his locker, both feet, headers, he’s gone round the ‘keeper, he’s slotted the ‘keeper, he’s chipped the ‘keeper, he’s scored from distance.
“We’ve seen him do every finish, but somehow he manages to conjure up a miss – I don’t know how many times he hit the post and the crossbar last season.
“There’s definitely a player in there, you look at him and think, ‘what a handful he is to play against.’
“He scored a lot of goals for Benfica in his second season and a couple of seasons ago he got 20-odd for Liverpool.
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“I wouldn’t be surprised if Nunez goes somewhere else and scores 20 goals next season.
“You might get him on the cheap, you wouldn’t pay £90million for him, but you might get him for £40million.”
Nunez may be highly rated by Saunders but the Liverpool forward scored fewer goals than Sesko and Gyokeres last season.
The 26-year-old only netting five times in the Premier League for Liverpool under Arne Slot.
Sesko scored 13 times in the Bundesliga, while Gyokeres scored an astonishing 39 goals in 33 games in Liga Portugal last term.
Gyokeres’ tally is only one less than Nunez has scored in all competitions since he joined the Reds for £85million in 2022.
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Nunez on the move
It appears Nunez is no longer ‘up for grabs’, as his exit from Liverpool nears.
He is closing in on a £42million move to Saudi side Al Hilal, with advanced talks ongoing, talkSPORT understands.
Al Hilal have been eyeing Nunez all summer and they made their first formal approach for him after the Club World Cup.
The Uruguay international will depart Liverpool having scored 40 goals across 143 appearances for the club.
He also provided 26 assists in his three years at Anfield and won the Premier League, Carabao Cup and Community Shield.
Man United and Arsenal will now hope that Sesko and Gyokeres outperform Nunez’s career in England…
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Sesko to Man United latest
Man United haven’t got the signing of Sesko over the line just yet, as they seek a new striker like Arsenal with Gyokeres.
But a deal is nearing between the club and RB Leipzig, with the Slovenian already making it clear he wants Old Trafford.
There has been an ongoing battle between United and Newcastle over the 6″5′ front man.
Newcastle had a bid accepted for Sesko, however, the Red Devils have now swooped in and are set to hijack the move.
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Ruben Amorim has already brought in Bryan Mbuemo from Brentford and Matheus Cunha from Wolves to bolster his attack.
And Sesko could well be lining up in front of that duo should his move to the Red Devils go through.
Man United and Newcastle warned Benjamin Sesko ‘won’t be prolific’
