Jhon Duran's impending transfer to Al-Nassr effectively puts paid to the chance of Darwin Nunez making the switch to Saudi Arabia this month.
It's been obvious for a while now that Nunez would remain with Liverpool until the end of the season, but The Athletic's David Ornstein reported that the Uruguayan was among Al-Nassr's striker targets as recently as this week.
Nunez was reportedly considered by Al-Nassr along with Duran and Bayer Leverkusen's Victor Boniface, but ultimately it is Duran who looks as though he will join Cristiano Ronaldo and Co. in Riyadh.
Speculation surrounding a potential January exit for Nunez has died down in recent weeks, particularly since he came off the bench to provide a match-winning contribution against Brentford in the Premier League.
Liverpool's stance all along has been that Nunez is not for sale, with squad depth key as the Reds continue to pursue glory on four fronts during Arne Slot's first season in charge.
Liverpool reportedly expects there to be a strong market for Nunez during the summer transfer window, should it choose to sell him at the end of the season, but for now the club is happy to have the 25-year-old on board.
That much was apparent when Liverpool rejected a mega-money bid for Nunez from another Saudi Pro League club, Al-Hilal, earlier this month.
Al-Hilal was willing to pay a £62 million ($85 million) transfer fee for Nunez's services, but even that lofty amount was not enough to tempt the Reds to sell.
Nunez would have pocketed £29M ($36M) per year had the move gone through, according to The Telegraph — that works out at a whopping £560,000 ($690,000) per week.
