Luis Diaz

[Frank Grimes]

Liverpool have all but signed him. Couldn't find a thread on him anywhere so sorry if there is already one.
So for those who have seen him play, what can we expect? Have Liverpool landed another gem?

 

[Ali Dia]

He’s labelled as world class in FM 22 for what it’s worth.

 

[OmarUnited4ever]

He might be a Mane level success.

Or Keita level disappointment.

Can't be written off though.

 

[Dumbstar]

He might be a Mane level success.

Or Keita level disappointment.

Can't be written off though.

I really wouldn't mind another Keita level 'disappointment' as long as he's never not injured all the time like Keita.

 

[OmarUnited4ever]

I really wouldn't mind another Keita level 'disappointment' as long as he's never not injured all the time like Keita.

What I meant by Keita level disappointment is the cost part mostly (50M+ fee), not Keita being a bad player, which is he is clearly not.

Keita's trouble is injuries, which in turn impacted his overall performances, but the simple fact is that he was an expensive player that didn't serve the purpose he was brought in for so far, but he is young enough to turn it around.

 

[Alvaro Maestre]

He had a horrible game against Perú, now Colombia is on the bring of not qualifying. I think he would have done better in Spain.

 

[Bebestation]

The One thing that gives me hope that this may not be that good is Klopp.

I've always found the first bunch of players Klopp goes for/utelises both at Dortmund and Liverpool have a better balanced squad and ability to win titles and cups.

As Klopps team and players gets older or players needs to be replaced (gotze at Dortmund etc) - the quality of what Klopp tends to build is about 5% different - still a good quality team but not exactly on the same level they once were either.

 

[Classical Mechanic]

He’s gone from being completely unremarkable to big numbers for 6 months age 25. Hopefully it’s a purple patch.

 

[njred]

It’s incredible that it looks like we are signing this guy after the rumors that were going around. Usually rumors are just rumors so I didn’t pay any mind to it. Díaz is going to push Mane let alone Jota. It’s nice to see we are decisive on a major signing again.

 

[giorno]

Liverpool have all but signed him. Couldn't find a thread on him anywhere so sorry if there is already one.
So for those who have seen him play, what can we expect? Have Liverpool landed another gem?

Highly likely imo. Been really impressive for Porto in CL. And if Jota can turn out like that...

 

[Bocca9978]

Is this a signing to cover Salah leaving in the summer?

 

[Red the Bear]

Hopefully he flops hard.

 

[Josh 76]

25 year old playing in the Portuguese league. Don't care how good hes been playing, he won't know what's hit him when he gets to the PL. Totally different type of football. Strange signing by Klopp. All his hit signings have all come from PL teams or have played in PL. The ones he signs from abroad are not very successful or take time to settle.

 

[Adisa]

25 year old playing in the Portuguese league. Don't care how good hes been playing, he won't know what's hit him when he gets to the PL. Totally different type of football. Strange signing by Klopp. All his hit signings have all come from PL teams or have played in PL. The ones he signs from abroad are not very successful or take time to settle.

Fernandes was roughly the same age playing at a similar level.

 

[Pintu]

25 year old playing in the Portuguese league. Don't care how good hes been playing, he won't know what's hit him when he gets to the PL. Totally different type of football. Strange signing by Klopp. All his hit signings have all come from PL teams or have played in PL. The ones he signs from abroad are not very successful or take time to settle.

This is wishful thinking at its best. How old were Salah and Fabinho when Klopp signed them?

Calling Diaz a "Portuguese league player" is very misleading. Porto is a club that plays the Champions league and goes toe to toe with the best teams in Europe on a regular basis.

Last season while United was being thrown out of the CL after losing to Leipzig and Istambul, Porto and especially Diaz were putting up decent fights against City (and a referee very favorable to City) and they were knocking out Juventus with 10 men. And they are to date one of only 2 teams to have beaten Tuchel's Chelsea in the CL.

 

[arthurka]

Who knows but they are a very well run unit at the moment, we are in no position to doubt them or their transfers. Watch him cost less then 30m and be a very solid player in a very well functioning team. They have a fantastic record signing players into this system. It actually looks like they know what they are doing over there.

 

[Classical Mechanic]

Calling Diaz a "Portuguese league player" is very misleading. Porto is a club that plays the Champions league and goes toe to toe with the best teams in Europe on a regular basis.

Do they? They were beaten 5-1 by Liverpool on their home patch this season and in the return leg beaten 2-0 by a reserve Liverpool side with Milner, Chamberlain and Morton in midfield. They’d get nowhere near top 4 if they were in the Premier League. That doesn’t mean a player can’t come from the Portuguese league and be brilliant but it does mean that you have to view performances in the Portuguese league with some degree of scepticism.

 

[General_Elegancia]

I’ve watched him some few matches and I would say this guy is absolutely amazing, he has a lot of potentials to be a world class player in the future. He has all attributes of great attackers should have: amazing in dribbling, great 1on1 skills, has some finishing skills, flair and he has some playmaking skills too. I really like him that he has some aggressive mentality that absolutely should have in EPL too, he reminds me a bit of peak Mane. I trust in Klopp’s method of developing players and I’m sure he will develop his playing levels to be higher .

 

[General_Elegancia]

Is this a signing to cover Salah leaving in the summer?

No and no, Diaz plays different positions from Salah. Maybe Mane ,Origi or Minamino will leave or bench after we buy Diaz.

 

[Bondi77]

I would have thought that the Ox would have made more of an impact at Liverpool by now but looks like he will get less game time now.

 

[Classical Mechanic]

I would have thought that the Ox would have made more of an impact at Liverpool by now but looks like he will get less game time now.

He looks like a Mane understudy if anything. If Klopp does play him as an 8 then it will be Elliot who is most disenfranchised. I guess Klopp might be looking for another false 9 option with the decline of Firmino with perhaps Mane going through the centre and Diaz on the left.

 

[Bocca9978]

No and no, Diaz plays different positions from Salah. Maybe Mane ,Origi or Minamino will leave or bench after we buy Diaz.

But he is a starter? Is Mane leaving?

 

[B20]

I would have thought that the Ox would have made more of an impact at Liverpool by now but looks like he will get less game time now.

Chamberlain isn't really a winger anymore anyway. He only gets gametime there when we have no other options.

His main concern is being overtaken by Jones and Elliot.

 

[DWelbz19]

Is this a signing to cover Salah leaving in the summer?

He’ll probably displace Mane if he’s good enough.

 

[General_Elegancia]

He’ll probably displace Mane if he’s good enough.

Accurate answer, Sadio will be 30 in several months and his forms have been so inconsistency during past 1-2 years.

 

[TsuWave]

Looks a player. Hopefully he flops

 

[RooneyLegend]

Accurate answer, Sadio will be 30 in several months and his forms have been so inconsistency during past 1-2 years.

Isnt Jota supposed to be the Mane replacement?

 

[MyOnlySolskjaer]

25 year old playing in the Portuguese league. Don't care how good hes been playing, he won't know what's hit him when he gets to the PL. Totally different type of football. Strange signing by Klopp. All his hit signings have all come from PL teams or have played in PL. The ones he signs from abroad are not very successful or take time to settle.

 

[Pintu]

Do they? They were beaten 5-1 by Liverpool on their home patch this season and in the return leg beaten 2-0 by a reserve Liverpool side with Milner, Chamberlain and Morton in midfield. They’d get nowhere near top 4 if they were in the Premier League. That doesn’t mean a player can’t come from the Portuguese league and be brilliant but it does mean that you have to view performances in the Portuguese league with some degree of scepticism.

Milan too lost to a rotated Liverpool. Would Milan be battling relegation in Championship? Did Italy win the Euros with 23 players from league one level?

Arsenal are being battered by City and Liverpool every other week and they are a serious "top 4" contender with West Ham. But maybe Porto is nowhere near the level of Arsenal and West Ham?

If you ignore context -like Porto missing 3 of their back 4- and try to draw conclusions from one game you are not getting far.

There is no Top 4 in the PL. There is a Top 3 but the rest of the league -despite being so much richer- is not stronger than Porto or Milan and it is delusional to pretend otherwise.

 

[Berbaclass]

 

[Cathy Ferguson]

Probably another success. Pool have the world's best scouts and coaches and that is why they can compete with City and we can't. Jota vs Sancho is very telling, paying less for the superior player.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Liverpool are great in the market these days so hopefully he's not another great addition for them. As good as Klopp is for them I fear as a club they've found the right path and that even after him they may continue being a very good team

 

[dinostar77]

Replacing Mane, Salah and Firmino in the long term is going to be a difficult ask. Jota has been a good signing. If Diaz is as well then their slow front line gradual rebuild will be going in the right direction.

 

[TwoSheds]

He's a good player, excellent finisher. Certainly a big upgrade on Minamino but I don't think he's going to be world class.

 

[AneRu]

Probably another success. Pool have the world's best scouts and coaches and that is why they can compete with City and we can't. Jota vs Sancho is very telling, paying less for the superior player.

The negligence at United is astounding, the scouts we have are remnants from the Fergie, Moyes and LVG era and two of them eras ended in disaster. Why we are keeping them and giving some of them posh titles is beyond me, we should be poaching whoever is doing the scouting for Leicester, Liverpool and Lille.

 

[TwoSheds]

The negligence at United is astounding, the scouts we have are remnants from the Fergie, Moyes and LVG era and two of them eras ended in disaster. Why we are keeping them and giving some of them posh titles is beyond me, we should be poaching whoever is doing the scouting for Leicester, Liverpool and Lille.

Diaz isn't better than our wingers. If he develops into a better player that will be down to coaching not scouting.

 

[AneRu]

Diaz isn't better than our wingers. If he develops into a better player that will be down to coaching not scouting.

The only forward we have who has done it consistently in recent years is Rashford the rest haven't done much to make an argument for them.

 

[Classical Mechanic]

Milan too lost to a rotated Liverpool. Would Milan be battling relegation in Championship? Did Italy win the Euros with 23 players from league one level?

Arsenal are being battered by City and Liverpool every other week and they are a serious "top 4" contender with West Ham. But maybe Porto is nowhere near the level of Arsenal and West Ham?

If you ignore context -like Porto missing 3 of their back 4- and try to draw conclusions from one game you are not getting far.

There is no Top 4 in the PL. There is a Top 3 but the rest of the league -despite being so much richer- is not stronger than Porto or Milan and it is delusional to pretend otherwise.

A C Milan are terrible. Hence why they've finished bottom of their CL group. They would be mid-table in the PL. Do they even have any Italian NT players? When were Arsenal getting battered off Liverpool or City in that nature? Klopp regularly puts out sides in the CL group stage that he wouldn't even play against the worst PL. Tyler Morton is a random youth player who has played 2 x 90 minutes in the CL but never played a single 90 minutes in the PL. That tells you everything about the level of some of these sides in the group stages. Liverpool beat Atalanta 5-0 on their home patch with a youth player that was on loan in non-league the season before in the centre of their defence. The likes of Porto and Milan come into those games with the confidence of winning most games in their domestic leagues and invariably get beaten easily. In the PL they'd be facing harder games every week and you'd see their level sink. What do you mean there's no top 4 in the PL? For the past two seasons it's been Liverpool, City, Chelsea and United. Those teams make up the top 4 now. There are 6 PL teams ahead of Porto in 17th in the UEFA club coefficients whilst AC Milan are ranked 40th! Since Porto last appeared in the Europa League final 10 years ago all those 6 English sides have appeared in the final of the major European trophies - Liverpool, City, Chelsea and Spurs all appearing in the Champions League final with United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool appearing in the EL final. All that considered I do think there's a gulf in quality presently and that these current Porto and Milan teams wouldn't get near the top 4 in the PL today.

 

[Hammondo]

He doesn't look that good.

 

[TwoSheds]

The only forward we have who has done it consistently in recent years is Rashford the rest haven't done much to make an argument for them.

You really ought to go and look at Sancho's record in Germany. Or Cavani and Ronaldo's record anywhere.