Fabrizio Romano has reported that Barcelona have approached Liverpool for Luis Diaz, though the Reds would prefer to keep him at the club until the end of his contract despite potentially losing him on a free. Whilst the board will attempt to resolve this issue, it will likely not be a possibility.
Barcelona Approach for Luis Diaz Rejected As Liverpool Prefer to Keep Forward
New Contract Unlikely
David Ornstein has reported that Liverpool have “rebuffed” Barcelona’s approach for Diaz, and have formally informed the Catalan giants that their player is not for sale. He continues to reveal that the forward was “of interest to Manchester City last summer and also has admirers in Saudi Arabia”.
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Unfortunately, Ornstein discloses that a “new contract [is] unlikely”, despite Richard Hughes and Michael Edwards best efforts to resolve this. The board have decided that they would rather “maximise his performance value” and lose him on a free when his contract ends in 2027, rather than take a big payday now. However, if they do “receive bids that enable them to land a replacement of similar or superior quality” they may reconsider.
Is Keeping Luis Diaz the Answer?
Diaz has performed excellently for Liverpool, particularly in the 2024/25 season, scoring 13 goals and five assists as he played largely as a striker, due to Cody Gakpo coming on leaps and bounds in the left-wing position. The “sensational” forward improved well on his eight goals last campaign.
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Keeping the Colombian may therefore be a smart move, given the Reds unfortunate luck in the striker department in recent years. Though Darwin Nunez has improved, he has not been the most effective signing, and Diogo Jota is often out injured. Whilst Diaz is not a conventional striker, he has clearly excelled in Slot’s system, and works well running in behind defensive lines.
With the current striker market fairly depleted, this may be a smart move. There are some premium number nines such as Victor Osimhen available, but if Liverpool can keep a tried and tested solution this will surely be cheaper. However, after giving Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah new contracts, the club’s financial state may slightly worsened, and after losing Trent Alexander-Arnold on a free, fans may be wanting to avoid a similar situation with their number seven.