It was the kind of miss that has so often prompted strikers to retreat into their shell and vanish without a trace.
But then nobody has accused Darwin Nunez of being a shrinking violet.
With Liverpool having not long taken the lead in this pivotal Champions League tie at Ajax, Roberto Firmino broke into the right-hand edge of the area and played the ball across the box for the unmarked Uruguayan at the far post.
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All Nunez had to do was tap into an empty net with home goalkeeper Remko Pasveer out of the equation. Instead, he belted his effort against the woodwork.
The forward, frustrated at a previous lack of service as the Reds floundered in the opening half-hour, had already made a bit of a fool of himself with an over-reaction to being manhandled to the ground by Ajax defender Calvin Bassey.
The montage makers were rubbing their hands in delight. Yet before they were even able to fire up their laptops, Nunez demonstrated why he is fast becoming a firm favourite with the Liverpool support.
Four minutes into the second half, he was strong and brave in meeting Andy Robertson’s outswinging corner delivery to head in off the far post and put the visitors in total control, his sixth goal in 13 outings for his new club.
Ajax had, of course, seen it all before, the forward netting at the same end where his header ensured Benfica eliminated the Dutch side from the competition last season and set up a meeting with Liverpool that would eventually lead to a permanent move to Anfield.
Nunez’s enthusiasm was such that, somewhat randomly, he shortly afterwards popped up on the edge of his own area to break up an Ajax attack and set the Reds on a counter.
From Roger Hunt, Kevin Keegan and Ian Rush through to Robbie Fowler, Fernando Torres and Luis Suarez, Liverpool fans have always had a passionate relationship with their club’s leading strikers. Nunez is being greeted with similar warmth.
And he was afforded a huge hug by Klopp having been replaced shortly after the hour, his job done in helping the Reds earn the positive result that secured their place in the Champions League knockout stages with a game to spare.
Nunez isn’t the most orthodox striker to have ever pulled on a Liverpool shirt. But there’s no doubting the Uruguayan is big box-office. You don’t know what he’s going to do next.
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