Nunez has most frequently played as a central forward for Benfica this season, as this graphic illustrates…
…but he’s not really a centre-forward, despite looking like one. He’s 6ft 2in tall, broad-chested and rapid, his size making his pace all the more terrifying for defenders who might consider getting in his way. In fact, combine that with his long hair and stick him in the light blue shirt of Uruguay and, at first glance, you might think you’re looking at another Edinson Cavani.
But he’s a very different player to his compatriot and fellow front man. For a start, despite most frequently playing more centrally, Nunez also plays quite a bit to the left when Benfica set up in a 3-4-3/3-4-2-1 formation, behind one of Roman Yaremchuk or Haris Seferovic.
And even when he is nominally starting in the middle, he often does much of his good work from the left, operating in what you might call the “Thierry Henry channel” — not a winger, not quite even a wide forward, but drifting in and out of those bits of the pitch where defenders aren’t.
The sense is that Nunez often does his best work on the counter-attack, in games where Benfica are obliged to sit back — usually in Europe — and use his pace and strength on the break, and his directness to forge goalscoring opportunities on his own.
It would be tempting for someone watching Nunez for the first time to think of him as a target man, but observers in Portugal also suggest he’s at his best when playing alongside someone filling that role, rather than doing it himself. He can and has played as a No 9 but, hypothetically, should Chelsea sign him, that wouldn’t necessarily mean he’s a replacement for Romelu Lukaku. He could just as easily play with the Belgian.
Anketa