Luis Diaz drops Barcelona or Real Madrid transfer hint

FT Desk

• 24 Nov 2022 14:51 GMT
• 3 min read

Luis Diaz has only been at Liverpool since January, but the Colombian winger is apparently already weighing up what his next destination could be.

Diaz joined Liverpool from Porto for a total €60 million package at the end of the January 2022 transfer window and wasted little time in repaying the faith Jurgen Klopp showed in him with seven goal contributions in 13 Premier League games in the second half of last season.

The 25-year-old winger had three goals and two assists from eight games this season before a knee injury cut his progress short - an impressive return given that Liverpool have collectively got off to their worst ever start under Klopp.

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Diaz has looked like a more than viable replacement for Sadio Mane, who left in a €41m move to Bayern Munich in the summer, but despite now having Spanish speakers like Darwin Nunez, Thiago Alcantara and Adrian for company at Anfield, it appears he would like to move to Spain itself in the longer term.

Family values

"I'd like to play for a Spanish club that has always attracted my family's attention," he admitted to Colombian outlet SoHo. "But it's more of a childish dream.

"For now, I only think about lifting trophies and making history with Liverpool, which is one of the biggest clubs in the world. I'm very grateful for the opportunity they've given me."

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Liverpool may be one of the biggest clubs in world football, but they have had a difficult time keeping players, particularly Spanish speakers, out of the clutches of Real Madrid and Barcelona over the years.

Champions League winner Xabi Alonso followed club legend Michael Owen to Madrid in 2009, four years after the 2001 Ballon d'Or had made the move, while Luis Suarez - one of Owen's successors - and Philippe Coutinho both joined Barca for big money more recently.