The electric winger had scored 13 Premier League goals – his club’s second-highest total – and claimed five Premier League assists, finishing the season with a Premier League winner’s medal. He had started 20-0dd top-flight games with only eight of his teammates playing more Premier League minutes that season.
And yet he was sold that summer as his club made the massive purchase of a Bundesliga sensation that ultimately led to his club winning the Treble, his club taking the decision that making a profit on a player who wanted to be elsewhere – at an age when his value would only diminish – was excellent business.
But enough about Raheem Sterling and his 2022 exit from Manchester City in the summer that Erling Haaland arrived, let’s talk about Luis Diaz and his potential exit from Liverpool in 2025 just as Florian Wirtz is coming through the door.
City and Pep Guardiola have long had the policy that any player is allowed to leave, with the obvious caveat that somebody has to meet the asking price. Whether that be Sterling, Julian Alvarez or Leroy Sane, City are prepared to wave supposedly key players through the exit door.
“If he stays here, why do we have to say you cannot be there? Who are we to say to their family you cannot go there? I don’t like it. Thanks to them we are where we are right now,” said Guardiola when asked why he had agreed to the Sterling sale.
We should expect something similar from Arne Slot if Liverpool grant Luis Diaz the exit he clearly craves to Barcelona. In a summer when they have battled hard to keep two of their titans at the club in Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk, they should be more than happy to make a profit on a ‘starter’ who is far from being one of the first names on the team sheet.
Did he have a good season? Did he contribute to Liverpool’s title win? Yes and yes. But is he irreplaceable? Not really. Is he irreplaceable if you can make a profit on a 28-year-old? God no.
This summer has been a masterclass of early transfer manoeuvres from Liverpool, who are upgrading at 10, are close to upgrading their left-back and may well have already upgraded or at least transitioned to a different kind of right-back. An upgrade on Darwin Nunez is surely the only outstanding incoming business on their agenda.
The outgoings have already begun with Caoimhin Kelleher and he will not be the last fringe player to be sold this summer. But the real juice is in knowing when to sell players that are one step up from the fringes…the players who start more often than not, but might go three months without scoring a Premier League goal, and crucially might be – for a short time – worth more than you paid.
Barcelona might not have enough levers to pull for a Diaz deal and may opt for the ‘free’option of Marcus Rashford instead, but if the gift horse is led into the arena, Liverpool should not take a long look at its teeth. Liverpool’s asking price is said to be £72m but anything north of £60m would constitute an excellent deal for a non-elite 28-year-old.
There are certain financial practices that should not be copied by any of their rivals, but Manchester City’s willingness to sell disgruntled or even mildly itchy-footed footballers at a price that suits them is a policy most clubs should adopt, particularly Manchester United.
In a summer when Liverpool are in danger of getting everything right, selling Luis Diaz could be the cleverest decision of all. And it means next season’s Treble will be nailed on.