Tottenham Hotspur led the race to sign the Colombian winger Luis Diaz from Porto in the winter transfer window. But now it seems that Spurs will lose the race to Liverpool, who came at the last moment as a surprise. Liverpool has agreed on a deal to sign Porto winger Luis Diaz ahead of Monday’s transfer deadline.
Jurgen Klopp’s side will pay an initial fee of 45 million euros with an extra 15m euros in performance-related add-ons.
Liverpool did not plan to sign any strikers in the winter transfer window. But as Tottenham pressured the Colombian, Liverpool wanted to act quickly, and they put forward a deal for him.
Julian Ward, the soon-to-be sporting director, is leading negotiations, assisted by the outgoing Michael Edwards, and Diaz, who is currently away with Colombia in Argentina will sign a five-and-a-half-year contract at Anfield.
Diaz has twice played against the Reds this season in the Champions League for Porto, and though Liverpool won both games comfortably, the management was eyeing on him. They were impressed with his performance.
Diaz began his professional career in the Colombian Second Division at Barranquilla before moving to Junior, winning Categoria Primera A, Copa Colombia, and Superliga Colombiana. In 2019, he joined Porto for a reported fee of 7 million euros, winning a Primeira Liga title, one Taca de Portugal, and one Supertaca Candido de Oliveira, while being part of the squad that won a domestic double in 2020.
Diaz made his senior international debut for Colombia in 2018. He has made over 30 caps for his country, helping the national team to a third-place finish at the 2021 Copa America. He was awarded the Golden Boot as joint top goalscorer of the tournament alongside Argentina’s Lionel Messi.
So far this season, Diaz has found the net 16 times and laid on six assists across 28 games, a tally only surpassed by Mohamed Salah in the Liverpool camp in 2021/22 to date.
Liverpool goalkeeper highly praised the Porto winger when he played against him during national duty. “Luis Diaz is an excellent player, he does a lot of work for the defence, he did it in the goals of Copa America,” Alisson said.
Valderrama, the most celebrated Colombian footballer in history, loved Diaz’s ball control. Ronaldinho is Diaz’s role model, and he always tried to invent tricks and enjoy himself with the ball, like the Brazilian superstar. Those efforts were not in vain, even though a lot of work was needed to become a proper footballer.
“Lucho had a big problem, because he had a habit of running with the ball looking at the ground, and often didn’t even notice that he had reached the end of the field,” Pocillo Diaz continued. “He was very fast, possessed brilliant technical skills, and the ball stuck to his foot like glue, but he had to learn.”
The 25-year-old winger has improved a lot. His solo goal against Manchester City in the Champions League says a lot.