Darwin Núñez's Potential Move to Trabzonspor: A Reunion with Salah
Turkish journalist Yagiz Sabuncuoglu reports that Trabzonspor have reached an agreement with Darwin Núñez over a move to the Black Sea club, setting up one of the most eye-catching attacking partnerships in Europe – if Al-Hilal can be persuaded to let him go.
The Saudi champions are the real obstacle.
They paid Liverpool around €53 million for Núñez only last year and tied the Uruguayan to a contract running until 2028. With that kind of outlay and long-term deal, Al-Hilal are under no pressure to sell cheaply, and Sabuncuoglu’s report does not disclose the size of their asking price.
What is clear: this will not be a bargain hunt.
A pay cut for another shot in Europe
For Núñez, the move would mean a significant financial sacrifice.
He is believed to be earning about €15 million net per year at Al-Hilal. Trabzonspor, who finished third in the most recent Süper Lig season, are reportedly only able to stretch to a maximum of €8 million annually.
So if he comes, he comes for football, not for the pay slip.
Right now, Al-Hilal are described as completely open to selling Núñez. The 27-year-old has effectively been frozen out since early February, when Karim Benzema arrived and the Saudi Pro League’s strict foreign-player quota forced a brutal decision. One foreign star had to be cut from the domestic squad. Al-Hilal chose Núñez.
The fallout was immediate.
From that point, he featured only twice more in the AFC Champions League up to mid-February and has now gone roughly half a year without a competitive appearance. Before being sidelined, he had produced nine goals and five assists in 24 games for the club – numbers that underline why European sides still see value in him.
Salah and Núñez, together again
The lure for Trabzonspor is obvious.
Núñez would walk into a dressing room already buzzing after the arrival of Mohamed Salah, who joined on a free transfer after leaving Liverpool, greeted by huge excitement in Trabzon.
Between 2022 and 2025, Salah and Núñez led Liverpool’s attack together. Reuniting them on the Black Sea would give Trabzonspor a frontline with genuine Champions League pedigree and a global profile that Turkish football outside Istanbul rarely enjoys.
Armed with Salah and potentially Núñez, the club from north-eastern Turkey want to crash the Istanbul duopoly, take on Galatasaray and the other heavyweights, and launch another serious title push after last being crowned champions in 2022.
Loan or nothing?
Trabzonspor’s preferred formula is a loan deal with an option to buy. That structure would limit their immediate risk while giving them a clear path to keep Núñez long term if the move works.
Whether Al-Hilal will accept that is another matter. With a major fee paid only a year ago and no urgent financial pressure, they can sit tight and wait for an offer that better reflects their valuation.
One detail adds another layer of intrigue.
If the final package reaches the expected level, Núñez would become only the ninth player in football history to cross €200 million in cumulative transfer fees. He currently stands at €184 million; he needs at least another €16 million to join that exclusive group.
A stalled star in Saudi Arabia, a reborn giant on the Black Sea, and the chance to reunite with Salah: is this the move that reignites Darwin Núñez’s career and shakes up the Süper Lig title race?
