Arne Slot has defended Darwin Nunez following recent online criticism of the Liverpool striker from fans.

The striker came in for some backlash following his most recent performance in the Reds’ 1-0 win over Girona on Tuesday. Supporters are growing increasingly impatient with Nunez after a season that has mustered just three goals in 19 appearances for him.

The Uruguayan appeared to respond to the criticism with a cryptic message shortly after the win in Spain, posting on his Instagram account: "They are not all, they are some. Thank you Reds for your support, we are all still together."

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Now in his third season at Anfield, supporters are expecting more of Nunez, especially given the hefty price the Reds paid to take him off Benfica’s hands. He still retains Slot’s faith, although even the Liverpool boss noticed there was a problem with his performance against Girona.

Nevertheless, Slot does have experience when it comes to changing the fortunes of a striker. He managed to revitalize Santiago Gimenez at Feyenoord, who had scored just 21 goals in 105 games before making the move to Rotterdam, where he boosted his numbers to 49 in 91.

“That’s what we are expecting because we see his qualities,” Slot said on Nunez. “The fans have a lot of love for him, 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 then it would be that my substitutions or line-up were not good... that is what social media is all about! If you win it’s all brilliant, if you lose it’s all ----!

“But Darwin has shown already that he is a goal-scorer. He is able to do so. In my opinion, it is a matter of time before he starts to score. But he is in competition with Luis Diaz, who can play as a No.9 as well, and Diogo Jota. It is not just the challenge of scoring goals but competing with others too.”

Nunez will be hoping to put his struggles behind him when Liverpool looks to strengthen its position at the top of the Premier League table against Fulham on Saturday. To do that, Slot believes he may have to put any supporters’ opinions out of his head, whether they are negative or positive.

Explaining Nunez’s problems in front of goal, Slot said: “Maybe it's because the fans support him so much, maybe he wants it too much to score that goal for himself and also for the fans because they have been very supportive. All our players feel the support of our fans but he is definitely one of them.

“Mo [Salah] 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.”