Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag could face Darwin Nunez again should he complete his Liverpool move, after the striker knocked his Ajax side out of the Champions League last season.
The Dutch giants were dumped out of the competition when the forward scored the all-important goal to set-up Benfica's clash with Liverpool in the last-16. Nunez's header was enough to knock the Dutch champions out of the competition.
Liverpool have made the Uruguayan their top priority as Jurgen Klopp's side brace themselves for the departure of Sadio Mane amid interest from Bayern Munich, though, the Reds won't let the 30-year-old go on the cheap.
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An in-swinging free-kick was powerfully nodded home by Nunez as he capitalised on Andre Onana's rush of blood which left him stranded in no-mans land. With Liverpool in the driving seat to snap up the highly-rated forward, it could set up an unwanted clash with the Dutchman as he acclimatises to the Premier League with Manchester United.
For the United boss, he faces the difficult task of picking up the pieces following a torrid season. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer found himself on the managerial chopping block after a string of poor performances with Liverpool's Old Trafford rout among the run.
Ralf Rangnick took control on an interim basis until the end of the season but the German couldn't spring a turnaround. Now, he finds himself with a number of unwanted records at the Theatre of Dreams.
The incoming manager, Ten Hag, has to restore a mentally-shattered defence that shipped a record number of goals in Premier League history, last season. Should he fail to do so, he runs the risk of replicating a feat that left a "bitter" taste from his time at the Johan Cruyff ArenA.
"We played good football, we were good defensively, and we also played good pressing. Then it is bitter that you do not win," he told RTL following their defeat in March.
"But small mistakes have big consequences, you will see that tonight, and in Lisbon. We know that they are strong in set-pieces and then there is a miscommunication between two players. We have neutralised them completely, except for one moment."
If mistakes were a problem for his defence in Holland, should Nunez arrive, he will need to shore up the Red Devils' fragile defence. Otherwise he will face a similar ill-fate at the hands of the 22-year-old and potentially Liverpool's soon-to-be talisman.
