Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp was delighted with the performance of club-record signing Darwin Nunez after he was introduced to proceedings off the bench against Manchester City.
The two sides have long been challenging each other for the game's biggest honours and while it was not a major trophy at stake on Saturday, it was still the Community Shield on the line. If this meeting was one that provided both clubs with a chance to feel each other out, it was the Reds who delivered the first punch of the season with a dominant 3-1 victory.
Nunez's efforts went down well in the eyes of his manager, who waxed lyrical over his cameo appearance after the game. "Yeah he’s good. Today we played the smartest passes, we need these balls from the side," Klopp explained.
"In the first two games we passed in behind and after three runs in pre-season you are killed. We seen him in training, involved in all dangerous situations, opened the game for us but was there in the finishing moments as well - good game."
Trent Alexander-Arnold handed Liverpool the lead mid-way through the first-half with a strike that deflected off of the head of City defender Nathan Ake and beyond the outstretched reach of Ederson. The interval marked a brief end to sustained Reds pressure.
However, it was City who were next to strike in the 70th minute when debutant Julian Alvarez bundled home from close range to equalise for Pep Guardiola's side. The Argentinian was forced to wait a significant while before he could properly celebrate due to the length of the VAR check which eventually determined the former River Plate star was onside.
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City were level for less than 15 minutes, with Nunez at the heart of things as his header struck the arm of Ruben Dias - producing a penalty for Liverpool that Mohamed Salah duly stepped up to convert despite Ederson getting a hand to his effort.
As second-half stoppage time drew to a close, Nunez capped off a stellar individual performance with a goal of his own. The Uruguayan remained calm and composed to nod past the onrushing City 'keeper and put the result beyond any doubt.
Such was Nunez's joy at finding the back of the net, the 23-year-old whipped off his shirt in elation and was actually yellow-carded as a result.
After the game, Nunez's teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold was just as complimentary of his showing as his manager. "He won the penalty, scored the goal, had a one-on-one," the Reds right-back added. "He looks lively, very lively, he’s someone who’s been brought into score goals and he’s proved he can do that today."
