Darwin Nunez joining Liverpool is a happy fairy tale of a poor boy, a sick mother and the unconditional sacrifice of his brother.
At the age of 22, Darwin Nunez became the most expensive player in Uruguayan history when he moved from Benfica to Liverpool for 100 million euros. Before this change, his childhood passed not easily.
Darwin became the most expensive player in Europe
Days with not enough food
Darwin came from Pirata – a settlement in Artigas, a city of more than 40,000 people located on the river basin of the Rio Cuareim – which is located very close to the border with Brazil.
Darwin’s childhood saw the area where the family lived frequently flooded with water during floods. So far, this problem has not been fixed.
Darwin’s father, Bibiano Nunez, a freelance bricklayer who did not always have a job, could barely support his family.
The family lived in a shack, and almost everything fell on the shoulders of mother Silvia Ribeiro – who is still called “cartonera” by neighbors.
That nickname refers to people who collect cartons or bottles on the street and sell them for change.
Junior brother gave up his dream for Darwin to succeed
Nunez began to explode in the Penarol youth team and was considered by many as the “new Cavani”. But fate has not yet finished testing his will.
The young striker born in 1999 had to overcome two serious knee injuries that threatened to ruin his young career. Especially the situation where he tore the anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus at the age of 16.
At the same time, from home comes bad news: his mother is seriously ill. Silvia was forced to take time off work due to ill health and needed her son’s help at home.
Darwin beside his mother
Success from brother’s sacrifice
Before their mother’s situation, Darwin and Junior both chose to give up their dream of becoming a professional footballer to return to their hometown.
It turned out that Darwin was the one who… failed to give up his dream. Junior makes the choice that he believes is best for his brother and family.
“You’re better than me. You have to keep playing,” Junior told Darwin and returned to Artigas to work and take care of his mother. Now, the older brother is a policeman.
His brother’s unconditional sacrifice added to Darwin’s motivation. He tries to go professional to help his family.
Darwin’s numbers at Penarol weren’t outstanding, but his qualities caught the eye of scouts from Europe.
Darwin has been growing steadily since arriving in Europe
In 2019, Nunez landed in Europe after Almeria – the team then played in the Segunda league, Spain’s second division – recruited for a total cost of about 5 million euros. Here, he scored 16 goals in 32 matches.
That outstanding form helped him move to Benfica just a year later. Darwin, with a transfer fee of 23 million euros, became the most expensive purchase in the history of the Lisbon capital team. He is also the highest selling sale in Segunda history.
Darwin kicked off his adventure in Portugal with 14 goals. In the just ended 2021-22 season, he scored 34 goals in 41 games. In the period ’21-22, the Uruguayan scored 34 goals in 41 games, including 6 goals in the Champions League to send Benfica into the quarterfinals.
Now, Darwin Nunez becomes the “Sir of 100 million euros” when he joins Liverpool.
Coming to Anfield is a fairy tale with a happy ending after a difficult childhood, and Darwin wants to write more miracles under the guidance of Jurgen Klopp, the “best coach in the world” as described by him. older brother.
