Gonzalo de Los Santos will forever be able to recall his first distinctive sighting of Darwin Nunez. It was in the spring of 2018 at Club Atlético Penarol’s Montevideo-based training complex and it took the former Uruguay and Valencia midfielder just a single glance at a half-fit version of the forward before he forced himself to uncharacteristically intervene.
“When I saw him train after his patella injury, I immediately spoke to the coach of the first team and told him to add him to the main squad,” Los Santos, the former Penarol sporting director, tells the ECHO. “His mentality was very strong and he wanted to grow."
While the Uruguayan continued in his recovery from a second significant injury to his left knee, Los Santos had been made aware of the prodigy's potential less than a year after taking up a boardroom role at Penarol.
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On that particular occasion, the recommendation arose from the club's head of the academy, who was keen to make the 46-year-old familiar with the unconventional frontman who would soon rise to supremacy in his homeland.
"'Remember this boy because he will go far!'" adds Los Santos, reciting the advice offered to him as Nunez hobbled around the perimeter of the club's training pitches in the penultimate phase of his rehabilitation.
Since such optimistic back-and-forths were exchanged in the depths of Montevideo over four years ago, it has been a breathtaking journey within the professional ranks for Nunez, who has commanded close to £100m in transfer fees and followed in the path of compatriot Luis Suarez in making the move to Liverpool after a brief stint at a European side engrossed in their brilliance of yesteryear.
On Thursday evening, however, the boy from the poverty-stricken neighbourhood of El Pirata, Artigas, will witness his career reach a crescendo when he pulls on the sky blue shirt of Uruguay for their World Cup opener against South Korea.
For Nunez, it will also be the conclusive classes of his unparalleled apprenticeship for La Celeste as the illustrious duo of Edinson Cavani and Suarez, who boast a sensational 126 goals in 267 combined appearances for their homeland, are set for their international swansongs upon the conclusion of this year's finals in Qatar.
The contest at the Education City Stadium will therefore commence the passing of the baton for the plucky South American outsiders, who have become the masters of defying the odds at international tournaments and are one of just eight countries to have raised the sacred trophy. Impressively, achieving both triumphs within a 20-year span.
The first of the conquests came on home soil in 1930 as Uruguay prevailed in the inaugural FIFA World Cup, defeating South American neighbours Argentina in a six-goal thriller thanks to four goals in the favour of the hosts.
"Those two World Cup victories, as well as the Olympics and Copa America, hold a tremendous amount of weight," football historian and author of From Beauty to Duty: A Footballing History of Uruguay, Martin da Cruz tells the ECHO. "Being the first hosts and winners fuels pride and aspiration, with every Uruguayan dreaming of reaching such heights being repeated.
"It tells the players and fans that anything is possible, with 1930 showing that they can be leaders, while 1950 instils the belief that while never favourites, they can beat anyone.
"Football is central to the life of all Uruguayans. They live and breathe football. It's part of the everyday lexicon and you’ll see it during the World Cup, a time when the entire nation stops and puts differences aside. For Uruguayans abroad, the game is not only a source of pride but also helps maintain a connection to the country."
After hosting all 18 matches across just three venues in the initial showpiece event 92 years ago, the now prosperous municipality of Montevideo keeps a unique place in the hearts of every native. But such affection towards the capital city is amplified for the Liverpool striker, and understandably so.
At 14 years old, it was Montevideo that offered the dream-chasing whizz-kid an escape from his origins and later authorised Nunez to migrate 350 miles away from his north-western home in eagerness to pursue his dream of becoming a professional.
"Being a boy from the outskirts of the country, his adaptation was slower than usual," says Los Santos, reminiscing about one of Penarol's greatest exports. "Montevideo is a big change! He comes from a very humble family and they always support him."
Later this year Nunez will be hoping for an unanticipated return to the metropolis of Montevideo, yet this time he dreams of a visit while chaperoning the glistening 18-karat gold World Cup trophy. He, Federico Valverde and Ronald Araujo are La Celeste's young heads tasked with leading an improbable quest for glory as all 26 members of Diego Alonso’s squad chase a status of immortality in their homeland.
The 23-year-old is set to be handed a starting berth off the left-hand side of a three-man attack, shortly before dusk smothers the Qatari desert’s skyline on Thursday evening. While Suarez is expected to spearhead the attack, it will be hoped that Nunez can assist his 35-year-old counterpart with his athleticism, bullish practice and undeniable mastery in causing disruption to opposition defences.
Of course, the Liverpool forward is also expected to relieve Suarez of the goalscoring burden that has been heavy on his shoulders since the retirement of Diego Forlan in 2014.
Regardless of collective or individual success in the Middle East over the next four weeks, any participation will represent a far cry from the life Nunez found himself living in Penarol’s 2018 title-winning campaign, where his eye-catching cameos saw an excess of European scouts flock to the Estadio Campeon Del Siglo to catch a glimpse of a 20-year-old forward who was quietly forging a promising reputation for himself across the Primera Division, leaving his meteoric rise in the resultant years as no surprise.
Speaking to those who have had an influential hand in the development of the Uruguayan's craft, the sentiment is one of admiration for the skillset Nunez possesses, with many believing he carries the credentials to develop into one of the most complete strikers to arrive in Europe in recent times.
That was indeed the impression David Badia held as he wandered back into his office after working with the towering Uruguayan for the first time in November 2019. At the time, Badia was serving as assistant manager at Spanish second division side UD Almeria after being invited by the club's recently-appointed manager, and Real Madrid legend, Guti to try to steer the club up the division after a series of chaotic managerial appointments.
Although the Spanish duo would only last less than a year at the club after failing to achieve promotion, despite Nunez’s 16 league goals, Badia reflects on his time working with Nunez with extreme admiration.
"He was a very, very good player," Badia tells the ECHO. "Nunez had incredible speed and also a great awareness in front of the goal. At the same time, he was very humble. Guti saw him as a very high-potential player.
"He was always very nice, friendly and open to learning. He knew that he had a very good chance to progress in his career from the Spanish second division team with a good coach as experienced as Guti.”
The 46-year-old admits that after just weeks of working with Nunez, he and Guti were resigned to the fact that they would lose Uruguay’s most compelling prodigal son, even if they did secure an unlikely promotion to La Liga.
“We all knew that he is going to be in a big club and that Almeria was going to be a short step for him," Badia adds. "He is a very fast player, with an extraordinary finish in one touch. Most of all, he's a hard worker in the defensive phase.
The 48-year-old, who now manages Akritas Chlorakas in Cyprus, will be following proceedings in the Middle East with a firm eye, hoping his one-time scholar can steal the spotlight over the next four weeks.
“Of course,” declares Badia, when asked if Nunez has the mentality to become the face of Uruguayan football, starting in Qatar. “He is now starting to believe in himself and showing to the football community that he is an amazing player"
The message from his former Uruguay directors is a straightforward one too.
"He has all the potential to be one of the most important soccer players in Uruguay and Europe if he puts his mind to it," says Los Santos, bursting with pride ahead of La Celeste's Group H opener. "I would like him to go his own way and not compare him with Luis, Edi or Diego.
"People in Uruguay are delighted because Liverpool is a giant institution with a lot of history, where Darwin can continue to grow!"
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