Darwin Núñez agrees Al Hilal exit as Newcastle and Chelsea line up the free transfer
Darwin Núñez has agreed terms with Al Hilal to mutually terminate his contract, nine months after leaving Liverpool for the Saudi Pro League. The Uruguay striker has not played a league match for the club since February, and he is set to leave on a free transfer this summer.
The trigger was Karim Benzema. Al Hilal signed the former Real Madrid forward in the winter window, and Saudi Pro League rules cap each squad at ten foreigners, with eight senior players and two under-21s. Núñez was the casualty. He was dropped from the league squad on 13 February, with manager Simone Inzaghi opting to keep his AFC Champions League Elite registration open but freeze him out of domestic football for the rest of the campaign.
Who is in the queue
Newcastle United are the club most strongly linked. Reports out of England describe Newcastle as the front-runner, with personal terms still to be worked through. The 26-year-old earns a Saudi salary, and any Premier League move will mean a significant pay cut. Chelsea are also tracking the situation, with Juventus and AC Milan watching from Italy. Aston Villa have not surfaced in the latest round of reporting.
The pitch from Núñez's camp is that he is open to a Premier League return after three years at Liverpool that produced flashes but also long stretches of inconsistency. He left Anfield in August 2025 for around 53 million euros, with the proceeds going into Liverpool's summer rebuild.
The Liverpool record
Núñez made 143 appearances for Liverpool across three seasons, scoring 40 goals and winning the Premier League and Carabao Cup. The Anfield stint was always more about moments than month-to-month consistency. He hit 15 in his first season, then 18, then dropped off through the third before Liverpool decided to cash in.
What happened in Saudi
The Saudi numbers were not the problem. Núñez scored six goals and added four assists in 16 league matches before Benzema's arrival broke the squad math. He stayed eligible for Al Hilal in the AFC Champions League Elite, but the Saudi Pro League season ended without him in a matchday squad.
The next move depends on which club gets to the personal terms first, and how much of his Saudi salary the 26-year-old is willing to cut for a return. The Premier League summer window opens on 15 June.
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