‘I would’: Paul Merson says Arne Slot should drop £45m Liverpool player this weekend

Liverpool need to bounce back from their defeat against Nottingham Forest last week as they face Bournemouth this weekend.

The Reds struggled against Forest last week, and they will be hoping to put things right with a statement performance against the Cherries.

Writing in his column for Sportskeeda, Paul Merson has been previewing this game, and he’s offered Arne Slot a piece of selection advice.

Indeed, Merson has stated that Darwin Nunez should start this game with Diogo Jota dropping to the bench, as he believes Bournemouth will sit back and that will allow Nunez to thrive off any crosses.

Darwin Nunez should start vs Bournemouth

Merson urged Slot to start Nunez and drop the £45m man to the bench.

“I would also play Darwin Nunez instead of Diogo Jota in this game. When teams sit back, which I think Bournemouth will do, Nunez is a good option. If Liverpool play Nunez, they can ping crosses into him and that could work in their favour,” Merson wrote.

Darwin Nunez needs a chance

Liverpool’s attack has looked pretty flat over the past two matches.

The Reds failed to score against Nottingham Forest last week, while their 3-1 win against AC Milan was courtesy of two goals from their centre-backs.

Liverpool’s attackers are firing blanks at the moment, and perhaps Nunez is just the player they need to shake things up and bring that chaos factor to the team.

Of course, in the opening weeks of the season, Liverpool were brilliant going forwards, but that form seems to have dissipated somewhat recently.

Liverpool need to put in a statement performance against Bournemouth to show Arsenal and Manchester City that they’re serious title contenders ahead of their respective clash on Sunday.

Don’t be surprised to see Nunez in the starting XI against Bournemouth, and if the Uruguayan does play, he could be a difference-maker this weekend.