After waiting to conclude a transfer to Napoli, Darwin Nunez‘s proposed move to Serie A is considered off – with his most prominent interest now in Saudi Arabia.
Nunez had given the go ahead for Napoli to hold talks with Liverpool over a transfer this summer, with the Italian champions tabling a bid.
That offer was worth around £52 million, which did not meet his asking price, and a month after contact was first made the deal has now collapsed.
Transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano reports that Napoli “have informed Liverpool that [the] deal can be considered off” with the “fee considered too high.”
Liverpool were pushing for a fee closer to £70 million, according to the Mail‘s Dominic King, with Napoli instead turning to Udinese’s Lorenzo Lucca.
Nunez could still attract offers in that region, however, with Romano claiming on X that clubs from the Saudi Pro League have now made the “initial approach” over a possible transfer.
The Athletic‘s David Ornstein reported on Tuesday that Al-Hilal were “keeping tabs” and “it is expected that a move for him will progress again soon.”
Al-Hilal were among the clubs to attempt to sign Nunez in January, with it claimed that the Saudi runners-up had offered the Uruguayan wages of £558,000 a week.
They went on to see Neymar leave the club in January and summer bids for Victor Osimhen have failed as he is expected to leave Napoli for Galatasaray.
A move to Riyadh could certainly be possible for Nunez, then, and though the striker was reported to prefer a switch to either Spain or Italy, journalist David Lynch explained in May that he was “happy to go to Saudi.”
With Liverpool now making contact with Newcastle over a potential deal for Alexander Isak it is clear that Nunez has no long-term future under Arne Slot.
That the club are prepared to spend around £130 million for the Swedish striker comes on the understanding that their current No. 9 will leave and generate sizeable funds in the process.
Per the Liverpool Echo‘s Dave Powell, any agreement worth over £21.2 million for Nunez would be considered profit on the club’s books.
