The 22-year-old Uruguayan has been linked with multiple clubs this transfer window. It is no surprise that most top clubs are looking to sign the striker, he had an impressive season with Benfica scoring 32 goals in 57 games.
With Liverpool set to offboard some of their players this window, they are also in search of replacements. Sources have announced Liverpool is the leading runner for Nunez, which is set to make an initial bid of around $80 million.
There has been no formal agreement as of yet. Manchester United is also in communication with Nunez’s agent.
Born in Artigas, Núñez joined Peñarol’s youth academy in 2013 at the age of 14. His first stay lasted only months, but he subsequently rejoined the club in 2014.
Núñez spent the first months of 2017 nursing a knee injury. He made his first-team – and Primera División – debut on 22 November 2017, coming on as a second-half substitute for Maxi Rodríguez in a 2–1 away loss against River Plate Montevideo, but had another knee surgery the following month.
Núñez scored his first professional goal on 13 October 2018, netting the opener in a 2–0 home defeat of Fénix. On 14 July 2019, he scored a hat-trick in a 4–0 routing of Boston River.
On 29 August 2019, Spanish Segunda División side Almería announced the signing of Núñez on a five-year deal, for a rumored fee of US$4.5 million plus $1.5 million in variables. He made his debut on 3 October as a half-time substitute in 4–2 league defeat against Sporting de Gijón.
On 27 October 2019, starting for the first time, Núñez scored his first goal for his new club in a 3–2 home win against Extremadura with a penalty. He finished his only season at the Estadio de los Juegos Mediterráneos as the league’s joint fourth top scorer with 16 goals, led by compatriot Cristhian Stuani.
On 4 September 2020, Núñez signed a five-year contract with Portuguese club Benfica, who paid a club-record fee of €24 million for the player. This was also Almeria’s and the Segunda División’s biggest transfer, with the club also receiving 20% of a future transfer. Eleven days later, he made his debut for the club in a 2–1 loss against PAOK for the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League third qualifying round replacing Pedrinho in the 65th minute of the game.
With his assist in a 3–0 win over Rio Ave on 18 October, he reached five assists in his first four league games, the best in the league. On 22 October, he scored his first goals for the club with a hat-trick against Lech Poznań in a 4–2 away victory in a 2020–21 UEFA Europa League group stage match. Four days later, he scored his first Primeira Liga goal in a 2–0 home victory over B SAD.
On 3 December he returned to action against Lech Poznań in the Europa League group stage, scoring Benfica’s second goal in a 4–0 home victory. He struggled over the course of the season with the effects of the virus and various injuries and did not score for four months. He scored six league goals and provided ten assists – second-best in the league – helping Benfica to a third-place finish and qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round.
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