The great satirist Armando Iannucci once wrote that Googling your own name is the equivalent of walking into a room in which everyone is shouting how s--- you are.

Modern footballers – even the most successful – would be wise to take heed and avoid social media for that reason. None more so than Liverpool’s Darwin Núñez.

Head to Anfield on match day and you will hear no such negativity towards the Uruguayan. Núñez’s name is chanted as often and with as much verve as that of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Luis Díaz, the No 9 needing only to close down a full-back to force a throw-in to provoke the crowd to erupt with pleasure.

Check into one of the online platforms minutes after the final whistle and the tone is darker, the disconnect between real and digital experiences a particularly modern and depressing tale, football fertile ground for those who wish to contaminate debate with insults rather than objective analysis.

As Manchester City captain Kyle Walker will testify after the appalling racism aimed at him in midweek, the nature of the abuse for some is more sinister and criminal than others.

But Núñez has often found himself targeted in the immediate aftermath of a bad night in front of goal and he has shown himself to be sensitive to it. At the end of last season he removed any trace of being a Liverpool player on Instagram as he felt scapegoated as the title challenge ended with a whimper. This week he posted the message on his Instagram page: “They are not all, they are some.”

That appeared to be a reaction to critical responses to a poor Champions League performance in Girona, when Núñez missed several clear chances.

Putting the arm around Núñez’s shoulder, his manager Arne Slot felt prompted to recognise the stark difference between the striker’s popularity among the match-going supporters and those throwing rotten turnips from afar. On the field, the Uruguayan is overwhelmingly hearing encouragement, which is why Slot thinks he would be wise to view the online responses in the right context.

“The fans have a lot of love for him,” said Slot. “I heard something about social media criticism but he will not be the first player who gets criticism on social media. That is what happens if you miss one or two chances.

“If we had lost the game [against Girona] then it would be that my substitutions or lineup were not good. That is what social media is all about. If you win it’s all brilliant, if you lose it’s all s---.”

In Núñez’s case, the goodwill within the stadium is influenced by his application and desire to become an attacker far more adept at pressing from the front than in previous years. From day one, the Kop has embraced Núñez as the work-in-progress who is occasionally sublime and often ridiculous, for better and worse, and is yet to fully shake off the ‘agent of chaos’ tag. With Liverpool top of the Premier League and Champions League, Slot argued the 25-year-old is bringing more good than harm to his starting XI.

“For me, he has had an impact with his work-rate,” said Slot. “If we lose the ball he is then aggressive to get the ball back and still creates chances.”

The Kop reacts positively to the striker’s desire to leave everything on the pitch and can see what may not always be clear on television – how often Núñez makes the correct runs but does not receive the right pass. There are lingering doubts that he will ever evolve to be as effective as his predecessor in the No 9 jersey, Roberto Firmino, but if he produces more consistently the hero worship will ascend to another level.

That cannot disguise lingering flaws. Three goals this season is a poor return for a central striker, and missing chances as he did in Spain inevitably leads to greater focus on whether the league leaders are relying too much on Salah. Fit-again Diogo Jota looks the more likely to assume the status as the senior central striker.

“OK, it is clear that with Darwin we would like a few more goals from him. He would like a few more himself. But in every other part of the game I am really happy with him,” said Slot, who also welcomes Federico Chiesa into his squad to face Fulham this weekend.

“All our players feel the support of our fans, but Darwin is definitely one of them. Mo is scoring so many goals he likes the support of the fans, but doesn’t really need it at the moment. But what I like about special fans is they are not only supportive when it is going really well for a player, but especially if he needs that support. That is what makes these fans of ours special in my opinion.

“Maybe it’s because the fans support him so much he [Núñez] wants it too much; to score that goal for himself and also for the fans because they have been very supportive.”