Darwin Nunez has sparked rumours of discontent at Liverpool, allegedly venting his frustration over limited playtime in a swiftly erased social media post. According to rife speculation, the Uruguayan striker is poised for an Anfield exit this summer after failing to secure a regular slot in Arne Slot's starting line-up.

Nunez's playing record this season features 42 appearances, but only 17 starts, amid a struggle to find the back of the net - he's managed just seven goals, five in the Premier League. The deleted message, reportedly shared then quickly removed, alluded to dissatisfaction with his game time, hinting: "No wonder I didn't play more, because the last game I started in the Premier League went well and suddenly.."

Following the enigmatic post, Nunez also adjusted his X profile image, resulting in the loss of his blue verification tick, before posting a sunny selfie with teammate Alexis Mac Allister from the AXA Training Centre captioned: "Good morning".

This incident arises amidst claims from Portugal that Nunez's benching is tied to finances, suggesting former club Benfica are due around £4million once he starts another match. However, local reports from the Liverpool ECHO insist there's no merit to the theory that financial motivations are sidelining Nunez, an assertion supported by Slot in his latest media briefing ahead of the next match.

"Do you always believe what journalists say? Not always? Me neither," the Liverpool gaffer quipped on Friday morning, hinting that not everything press write about players is to be taken as gospel.

"Sometimes you should, but sometimes it's better not to believe everything that is written about players."

With a clear fondness for the club environment, he went on to say, "This is completely new to me and I've said many times that I'm working at a club here where it's really nice to work."

He highlighted the strong relationship he has with sporting director Richard Hughes, adding: "So mainly sporting directors are judged by the players they bring in, for me it's very important to have a great working environment and I have that with Richard (Hughes)."

The manager robustly dismissed suggestions that financial implications would influence team selection: "The last, last, last, thing he would do, as I expect working with him for 10 months, is tell me 'if you play him it would cost us this much'."

He stressed that budget concerns never dictate his lineup: "That, he would never do. I don't even know if it's true, yes or no, because we never talk about that. He never interferes with a line-up. It might be true, but if a journalist says it we have to... (take it with a pinch of salt)."

Meanwhile, Nunez found the net in his last Premier League start during Liverpool's 3-1 triumph over Southampton last month, but since then, has been limited to only four appearances off the bench. The disappointment continued with a missed penalty that contributed to Liverpool's Champions League shootout defeat to Paris Saint-Germain and an absence from the squad in the recent victory against West Ham United.

Slot attributed Nunez's absence to illness, refuting rumours of a fallout with staff that led to the striker being dropped. Although Nunez was back in the squad for the recent win against Leicester City, he remained on the bench throughout the match.

Slot had previously criticised Nunez's work ethic during games against Wolverhampton Wanderers and Aston Villa in February, particularly after the striker missed an open goal in the 2-2 draw with Villa. Nunez began the season behind Diogo Jota but was given a chance when Jota was sidelined by injury in October.

However, Slot soon shifted Luis Diaz to a central role, pushing Nunez down the pecking order. Diaz even started as the main striker in place of Jota in the latest victory over Leicester.

Nunez's social media post was deleted just over a day before Liverpool's potential Premier League title-winning match against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, in which the Reds need to secure just one point to be crowned champions of England.