Glen Johnson has backed Liverpool new boy Darwin Nunez to come good - but the former Reds defender has warned Jurgen Klopp that the Uruguayan striker could still turn out to be a top-flight flop like Timo Werner.
Nunez was Liverpool's marquee summer signing following the departure of Sadio Mane, who quit Anfield to join Bayern Munich. Mane's exit prompted the Reds to put together a club-record £85million package to prise Nunez away from Benfica.
The 23-year-old enjoyed a dream start to his Reds career, netting in back-to-back games against Manchester City in the Community Shield and Fulham in the Premier League. But that early momentum came to an abrupt halt when Nunez saw red for headbutting Crystal Palace defender Joachim Anderson in Liverpool's second league match of the season.
After serving a three-match ban, Nunez has failed to score in three appearances for the Reds, who have also seen Mohamed Salah struggle in the opening weeks of the season.
Nunez, who plundered 34 goals in 41 games for Benfica last term, would not be the first striker to struggle on these shores after impressing overseas; Werner arrived in the top-flight as one of Europe's most clinical strikers following a prolific spell in the Bundesliga with RB Leipzig.
Ultimately, Werner struggled to replicate those heights in English football and was offloaded back to Leipzig this summer - but Johnson is confident that Nunez will fare better than Werner. He told Genting Casino: "I'm confident Nunez will come good. You want a player with a fire in their belly. He's a bit like Richarlison in that respect. Whether he hits the heights of Diaz we're yet to see but I think he's got the potential.
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"There's always a risk that he could become someone like Timo Werner. Just because a player flourishes away from the Premier League, doesn’t mean they’ll do it straight away."
That stance was previously outlined by Klopp, who hit at out people who criticised Nunez during pre-season. The Reds chief said of Nunez back in July: "It was good, it was really good. It is clear it will get better with time. We live in a world where everybody gets judged on first sight and that’s not helpful for anybody but it happens constantly.
"In the first few games [of pre-season] we were not even close to the fitness level of today and then when he came on, we passed each ball for him to chase it and after the third ball he was completely killed and then everybody judged his first touches and these kind of things.
"It's just a joke but we have to live with that, he will deal with it brilliantly. We are patient and we know he can do good stuff."