Darwin Núñez's Liverpool Future Dims as AC Milan Express Interest

Darwin Núñez once left Anfield as the face of Liverpool’s future. Now, as his career stalls in the Saudi Pro League, it appears the club he briefly called home will watch from a distance while others move in.

The 27-year-old striker, currently with Uruguay at the FIFA World Cup, has endured a brutal year since swapping Merseyside for Riyadh. His move to Al-Hilal last summer, worth an initial £46 million and a staggering £400,000 per week, was supposed to be a statement – for both player and league. Instead, it has become a cautionary tale.

His minutes have dried up. His influence has vanished. Núñez has barely featured since February.

When Al-Hilal secured Karim Benzema, the hierarchy made their priorities clear. Núñez was de-listed from the domestic squad, pushed to the fringes and left to wither in the shadows of a team that had already moved on from him.

From Liverpool’s record signing to a spare part in Saudi Arabia. The fall has been swift.

Bielsa Concerned, Al-Hilal Ready to Cut Loose

The situation has not gone unnoticed back home. Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa is reported to have harboured concerns over Núñez for some time, believing the forward has “physically deteriorated” during his prolonged spell without competitive football.

For a striker built on power, movement and intensity, that is a damning assessment.

Al-Hilal, sensing the stand-off cannot drag on forever, are said to be ready to rip up his lucrative contract to facilitate a return to Europe. A free transfer, or at worst a heavily reduced fee, is now on the table.

On paper, it looks like the kind of low-risk, high-upside move that might tempt a former club. In this case, Liverpool. In reality, the mood on Merseyside feels very different.

Reports suggest the outgoing Premier League champions are not prepared to gamble on a player whose trajectory has dipped so sharply since leaving Anfield. The romantic reunion, the redemption arc in red, is unlikely to be written.

Liverpool have moved on. So, it seems, must Núñez.

Milan Step In as New Favourites

Where Liverpool hesitate, AC Milan are ready to explore the opportunity.

Rúben Amorim’s side are now emerging as serious contenders for Núñez’s signature, with Italian outlet Milan Vibes reporting that early contacts have already taken place during the World Cup. The interest is real. The numbers, though, are daunting.

Núñez’s current salary – around €2 million per month – sits miles beyond Milan’s usual structure. The Rossoneri cannot simply lift that deal and drop it into their dressing room. It would blow a hole through their wage hierarchy.

So the negotiations will be delicate. They have to be.

Two paths are reportedly under discussion. One is a permanent transfer for a fee far below what Al-Hilal paid Liverpool, which would give Milan control over a new, more manageable salary package. That scenario could fit neatly within the club’s financial parameters, especially if Rafael Leão – currently occupying the club’s biggest wage slot – were to depart.

The other option is a loan, with Al-Hilal subsidising a chunk of Núñez’s salary. That route, though, is viewed as “highly unlikely”, with little indication the Saudi club want to keep any financial strings attached if they are already prepared to terminate his deal.

Milan, then, must decide how much they believe in a reset. Is Núñez a distressed asset waiting to be revived in Serie A, or a fading star whose peak has already passed?

A Second Chance in Serie A?

This is not the first time Italy has loomed on Núñez’s horizon. Milan tracked him during his Liverpool days, and he is also said to regret missing out on a move to Napoli last summer. Twice he has flirted with Serie A. Twice it has slipped away.

Now the league might represent his best route back into elite European football.

For Milan, the question is simple but loaded: is this the moment to strike on a once-explosive forward whose value has collapsed, or a risk too great for a club still rebuilding carefully?

For Núñez, stranded in Saudi Arabia and criticised by his national coach, the stakes are even higher. The next decision will not just shape his club future. It may decide whether he remains a central figure for Uruguay – or a warning of how quickly a career can unravel when the games stop coming.