Liverpool paid Benfica an initial £64.2 million for Darwin Nunez in June 2022, with the fee having the potential to rise to £85 million due to add ons. Nunez made his debut for Penarol as an eighteen year old in November 2017, coming on as a substitute for former Liverpool player Maxi Rodrigues in a game against River Plate Montevideo. Knee surgery stalled his progress but despite having made just fourteen appearances, UD Almeria of Spain's second tier were willing to pay $4.5 million for his services in the summer of 2019.

Nunez finished 2019/20 as Almeria's top scorer with sixteen goals, leading to Benfica signing him for a club record €24 million. He had a mixed first season, suffering niggling injuries and contracting Covid 19.  He ended the campaign with five goals and ten assists, then underwent knee surgery meaning he missed the start of 2021/22. When he got going in September though he was sensational, scoring twice in a 3-0 Champions League win over Barcelona and being named player of he month in the domestic league. He scored back to back hat tricks in away games in the run in to Christmas and the only goal in a 1-0 victory over Ajax in Amsterdam that set up a Champions League quarter final clash with Liverpool. the Reds won this tie 6-4 on aggregate, with Nunez scoring in both legs. 

By the end of the season Nunez was one of Europe's hottest properties, having finished as the Portuguese league's top scorer with 26 goals in 28 games. Liverpool moved quickly and agreed a free with Benfica whilst Nunez was on international duty, before bringing him to Merseyside to finalise the deal and formally announce it on 14th June. Comfortable on the left wing or in the middle, he is strong, well built, fast and was seen as an exciting addition to Liverpool's front line.

Nunez got off to the best possible start in a red shirt, scoring the third goal in a 3-1 victory over Manchester City in the Community Shield. He found the net on the opening day of the season at Fulham, then was sent off on his Anfield debut for a headbutt. Throughout the season he added an extra dimension to the Reds attack, finishing with fifteen goals from 42 appearances. A highlight was two goals in the 7-0 demolition of Manchester United. He was however not an automatic starter in the closing stages with Jurgen Klopp stating he was a long term project and emphasising the language difficulties, saying at a press conference "He has to learn English, that’s how it is, we can translate everything but in training sessions, we cannot have four languages translated".

2023/24 was another mixed season for Nunez. He started the first three games on the bench and in the last of these he came on to score twice late on as Liverpool came from behind to beat Newcastle 2-1 at St James Park. He also endured barren spells however, twice going eight league games without a goal. Nunez finished the season with eleven league goals, with an average of 186 minutes between each.

Núñez’s 2024/25 season included a mixture of starts and appearances from the bench, reflecting strong competition in the forward line. Nunez produced decisive moments in the league against Brentford with a late brace, but mainly drew criticism for missed chances in tight games and one cannot help but feel the overriding sense of untapped potential waiting to be fully realised. Darwin had flashes of brilliance but ultimately his inconsistency proved his downfall at Anfield. The exit sign had been hovering above Darwin's head for quite some time and he left for Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia for £46.3 million (£56.6 million with add-ons) on 9 August 2025.