Luis Diaz transfer - Liverpool not willing to meet Porto's asking price for Colombian forward - Reports
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Updated 06/01/2022 at 14:49 GMT
Jurgen Klopp’s side are reportedly in the market for attacking reinforcements in January, but suggestions that they are close to clinching a deal for Porto winger Luis Diaz are said to be wide of the mark. Liverpool could be without key men Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane for several weeks, with both in action at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Porto's Luis Diaz.
Image credit: Getty Images
Liverpool are not thought to be close to sealing a deal for highly-rated Porto and Colombia winger Luis Diaz, contrary to reports.
It had been suggested that Jurgen Klopp’s side were keen on the 24-year-old, with key men Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane set to miss up to a month of club action while on Africa Cup of Nations duty.
Mane’s Senegal, one of the pre-tournament favourites, have been drawn in Group B alongside Zimbabwe, Guinea and Malawi, while Egypt, captained by Salah, will face off against Nigeria, Sudan and Guinea-Bissau in Group D.
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Liverpool duo Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah.
Image credit: Getty Images
The event takes place in Cameroon from 9 January - 6 February.
The Reds reportedly see Diaz as “the perfect stand-in” for the absent duo, and a figure of £60m had been touted. However, The Athletic have reported that the Reds are unwilling to pay such a figure for someone who would not be a first-choice option.
Primarily a left-sided forward, Diaz has lined up against Liverpool twice this season in the Champions League; a 2-0 defeat at Anfield in November and a 5-1 home thrashing back in September.
He made his senior international debut for Colombia in 2018 before signing a five-year deal with Porto less than 12 months later, in a deal worth around €7m.
With 12 goals and three assists in 15 Primeira Liga matches this season, his form for Porto has left some of Europe’s elite on high alert.
Despite suggestions that a deal for Diaz will not take place, renowned Colombian TV presenter Cesar Augusto Londono has suggested otherwise.
“The negotiation to buy Luis Diaz is close to being closed,” he tweeted. "Liverpool [would pay] €71.7m (£60m).”
He added that Newcastle are also keen on the winger, but Jurgen Klopp sees attacking reinforcements as an urgent dilemma that needs addressing before the transfer window shuts.
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