Liverpool ‘owe Benfica another £8.5m’ after Darwin Nunez’s 60th game for the club triggered add-on clause in his contract… with the £85m Uruguayan striker involved in flashpoint with Man City boss Pep Guardiola
- Nunez had to be dragged off by Jurgen Klopp after a collision with Guardiola
- The Uruguayan’s 60th game for Liverpool led to another payment
- City-Liverpool is difficult to referee… but our campaign is running – IAKO
Liverpool will reportedly have to pay Benfica a further £8.5million after Darwin Nunez made his 60th appearance for the club.
It was an eventful one for the Uruguayan striker, who was involved in a heated argument with Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola moments after the final whistle of the 1-1 draw.
Nunez appeared upset by something Guardiola said and Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp had to drag him away.
Liverpool agreed a club-record £85million contract for 24-year-old Nunez when they signed him from Benfica in the summer of 2022.
That included £64 million paid upfront and the remaining £21 million in add-ons and, according to the Daily mirrorLiverpool are now owed £8.5 million after Nunez made 60 appearances for them.
Darwin Nunez made his 60th appearance for Liverpool in the 1-1 draw against Manchester City on Saturday, which reportedly prompted an £8.5 million payment to former club Benfica
Nunez (left) and Pep Guardiola (second right) were stuck in a queue after the match with the player having to be dragged away by his manager Jurgen Klopp
Nunez and Guardiola had to be kept apart after their altercation at the final whistle
They had already paid the Portuguese club £4.3 million after Nunez made ten appearances.
The report says the final £8.5m owed ‘depends on the team’s individual and collective performance throughout the contract’, which runs until 2028.
Nunez has scored 22 goals and contributed 10 assists in his 60 appearances for Liverpool so far. That includes seven goals and six assists in the current campaign.
He failed to score at the Etihad on Saturday, with Trent Alexander-Arnold giving Liverpool a point after Erling Haaland’s first-half opener.
Klopp dragged his fiery Uruguayan striker away from the touchline confrontation before returning for a lively chat with City boss Guardiola that ended with an embrace.
‘I love them both and that’s why I tried to calm the situation down. Surprisingly, I wasn’t involved at all!’ Klopp explained afterwards.
‘I’m not sure I’m the right person to explain it without knowing 100 percent what happened because I didn’t understand a word.
‘It was emotion. Pep wants to win, we want to win. Neither won, so obviously no one was really happy and these things can happen.
‘It had nothing to do with this historic fierce rivalry between the clubs – I don’t think Darwin knows anything about that.’
After the match, the Liverpool boss admitted that ‘I love them both’ he had acted as a peacemaker
Erling Haaland opened the scoring in the first half after a poor clearance from Alisson
Trent Alexander-Arnold leveled after the break with a well-aimed finish from outside the box