Liverpool forward wonderkid Darwin Núñez withdraws from Uruguay national team due to ankle injury..

2023-03-19 16:39

Liverpool forward wonderkid Darwin Núñez withdraws from Uruguay national team due to ankle injury..




Liverpool announced on its official website on Saturday that due to an ankle injury, the club's forward wonderkid Darwin Núñez will not be part of the Uruguay national team's squad for the international friendly matches against South Korea and Japan.


Soon after, the Uruguayan Football Federation also confirmed the matter and announced that Club América striker Jonathan Rodríguez will be called up to the national team.


Núñez had a cut ankle skin after a fierce collision with his opponents during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16s knockout stage second leg match where Liverpool lost to Real Madrid. Subsequently, the Reds' team doctors informed that the wonderkid's ankle needs to be treated to prevent from inflammation of wound, and they also suggested that Núñez withdraw from the national team because of tight schedule. After several considerations, the Uruguayan Football Association and Liverpool agreed to make Nuñez absent and focus on treatment.


Núñez, who was criticized after he moved to Liverpool from Benfica for £85 million last summer, has become better and better recently, and has begun to show his terrifying attacking efficiency when he played for the Portuguese Primeira Liga giants.


So far, Núñez has played 33 times for the Premier League giants across all competitions, scoring 14 goals and 4 times.


The 29-year-old Rodríguez was forced to return to Mexico to join Club América last summer when the foreign player registration limit for A-Nassr was full.


Since joining Club América, Rodríguez has made 30 appearances in all competitions for the Liga MX side, scoring 9 goals and assisting 3 times.


The Uruguay national team will travel to Tokyo for an international friendly match against Japan next Friday (March 24), and will fly to Seoul to challenge South Korea four days later, on March 28 (Tuesday).




The list of 23 players called-up by the Uruguay national team:




Goalkeepers: Sergio Rochet (Nacional), Santiago Mele (Unión Santa Fe), Gastón Olviera (Olympia)


Defenders: Ronald  Araújo (Barcelona), Sebastián Coates (Sporting Clube de Portugal), Matías Viña (Bournemouth / AS Roma), Giovanni González (Mallorca), Joaquín Piquerez (Palmeiras), Mathías Olivera (Napoli), José Luis Rodríguez (Vasco Da Gama)


Midfielders: Federico Valverde (Real Madrid), Matías Vecino (Lazio), Felipe Carballo (Grêmio), Manuel Ugarte (Benfica) , Giorgian de Arrascaeta (Flamengo)


Forwards: Jonathan Rodríguez (Club América), Facundo Pellistri (Manchester United), Facundo Torres (Orlando City), Diego Rossi (Fenerbahçe), Matías Arezo (Peñarol), Maxi Gómez (Trabzonspor), Agustín Canobbio (Atlético Paranaense)



*Fernando Muslera, José María Giménez , Diego Godin, Martín Cáceres, Rodrigo Bentancur, Lucas Torreira, Luis Suárez and Edinson Cavani all were not selected