Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has insisted that he "couldn't care less" about Darwin Nunez missing an open goal during the Reds' 5-1 thumping of Toulouse in the Europa League.
On the back of triumphs over LASK Linz and Union SG in their opening two European second-tier affairs, Liverpool maintained their 100% record in Group E in emphatic circumstances.
Diogo Jota, Wataru Endo, Nunez, Ryan Gravenberch and Mohamed Salah all made the net ripple for the Reds, who were briefly pegged back by a plucky Toulouse side through Thijs Dallinga.
Nunez rifled a close-range shot into the roof of the net at Guillaume Restes's near post for Liverpool's third in the 34th minute, but the Uruguayan was then guilty of one of two attacking howlers on the evening.
After Toulouse left-back Gabriel Suazo shot straight at Trent Alexander-Arnold's thigh with the rest of the goal gaping, Nunez skipped past Restes in the 65th minute and would ostensibly tap home into an empty net, but the striker's effort rebounded off the post.
Thankfully for Nunez, the ball fell for Gravenberch to score Liverpool's fourth and spare his teammate's blushes, and both he and Klopp saw the funny side as he was substituted immediately after his blunder.
The Anfield faithful chanted out Nunez's name as he made his way off the field with a wry smile, and Klopp is refusing to dwell on the South American's atrocious miss given his "incredible" all-around display.
"He played incredible. Honestly, in this moment, I couldn't care less that he hits the post in that moment because everything before was super-convincing, was absolutely clear," Klopp told reporters in his post-game press conference.
"How he took the defender away, how he passed the goalie, it was a perfect situation. He played really good. The goal he scored, the situations he was involved in, dropping into midfield, staying on the ball, all these kind of things.
"There were a lot of good things and he's in a good moment and that's for us obviously important. Really pleased for him with the performance. Yes, it's a bit of slapstick that the ball doesn't go in and then Ryan finished it off, that is cool.
"I said it before the game, he's a happy boy or man in the moment and you can see that every day. And now we have to make sure that it stays like that."
The Liverpool boss also waxed lyrical about the performance of Endo, who netted his maiden Liverpool goal with a pinpoint header on the half-hour mark and caught the eye with a composed all-around performance.
"I like a lot of individual performances but I would like to mention Waturu Endo. I'm not sure people think that's spectacular or whatever, but the forward passes he played tonight were absolutely incredible and how often he broke lines with one touch was absolutely insane," Klopp added.
"He scores a wonderful goal, which helps each player – even a more experienced player. So that's really cool. He would have got a similar hug [to Gravenberch] if I would have taken him off."
Cementing their spot at the top of Group E with nine points from nine, Liverpool could potentially confirm a first-placed finish when they reunite with Toulouse at Stadium Municipal in two weeks' time.
The Reds will now aim to register a third win on the bounce when they welcome Nottingham Forest to Anfield for their next Premier League affair on Sunday. body check tags ::
.JPG?w=87&h=65&auto=compress,format&fit=clip "Liverpool's Cody Gakpo receives medical attention after sustaining an injury on September 30, 2023")
