Welcome to Liverpool Luis Diaz

[VladimirIlyich]

1 hour ago, Jack the Sipper said:

Great article @Sugar Ape Of course, it sounds a bit dated now, obviously put together before the Lampardian power shift on Merseyside began: 

 

“This is different because Liverpool are a top team competing for the biggest trophies, Everton aren’t."

Feel the burn.

[LFC 6 Times]

Fit right in, as others have alluded to fit seamlessly into the side. He’s direct, full of energy and the rest of squad clearly rate him, the amount of ball he received in the first half in particular showed the faith they have in him.

[Code]

I have not really noticed Diaz in the games we had against Porto.

 

But its obvious that he will be a great player for us. Its understandable to me now, that we did not get Coutinho back on loan even if he was availible and we need such qualities in midfield/front three.

 

Diaz playing style reminds me alot of Coutinho, so it obviously makes a lot of sense to buy the younger version instead of getting the older original on loan.

 

His ability to take on and dribble past defenders, to cut in from the left with a wicked shot will give us a lot of goals. Great signing this one, I totally understand why Levy is fucked off. 

[VladimirIlyich]

1 hour ago, Code said:

I have not really noticed Diaz in the games we had against Porto.

 

But its obvious that he will be a great player for us. Its understandable to me now, that we did not get Coutinho back on loan even if he was availible and we need such qualities in midfield/front three.

 

Diaz playing style reminds me alot of Coutinho, so it obviously makes a lot of sense to buy the younger version instead of getting the older original on loan.

 

His ability to take on and dribble past defenders, to cut in from the left with a wicked shot will give us a lot of goals. Great signing this one, I totally understand why Levy is fucked off. 

Its also a warning to Salah and Mane's agents that the club is bigger than any individual player,as brilliant as they are.

[Johnlj]

Do we get all the Colombians now ?

[Numero Veinticinco]

I thought he looked like he had been playing for us for years. Seemed to settle very quickly and at times ran the flow of the attack.

[Mil-ing Around]

9 hours ago, Code said:

I have not really noticed Diaz in the games we had against Porto.

 

But its obvious that he will be a great player for us. Its understandable to me now, that we did not get Coutinho back on loan even if he was availible and we need such qualities in midfield/front three.

 

Diaz playing style reminds me alot of Coutinho, so it obviously makes a lot of sense to buy the younger version instead of getting the older original on loan.

 

His ability to take on and dribble past defenders, to cut in from the left with a wicked shot will give us a lot of goals. Great signing this one, I totally understand why Levy is fucked off. 

His playing style is nothing like Coutinho's. Phil beat players with lots of trickery and skill. Luis seems to use pace more, mixed with aggressive strength.

 

Diaz was great against us at Anfield, I'm surprised you didn't notice him, he caused us problems all game but especially in the first half

[Bobby Hundreds]

Diaz has definitely got quick feet, his skill level is up there.

[Bjornebye]

7 hours ago, Johnlj said:

Do we get all the Colombians now ?

Nah. Everton got Van Der Beak 

[dockers_strike]

Liverpool’s acclaimed recruitment team look like they have struck gold again.

Luis Diaz’s full Premier League debut was described by Jürgen Klopp as ‘one of the best first games I have seen from a player’. Meanwhile, last season’s bargain buy, Diogo Jota, reaffirmed his growing stature with two goals taking his season’s tally to 17.

Since Klopp became Liverpool’s manager, the club’s hit rate with signings has been the envy of most of the Premier League and Europe, whether it is for the club's record £75 million deal for Virgil van Dijk or free transfer of Joël Matip.

It’s a far cry from the days under Klopp’s predecessor, Brendan Rodgers, when the so-called ‘transfer committee’ was mocked for wasting resources on Mario Balotelli and Christian Benteke. So contaminated was the initial description of Liverpool’s recruitment team, the word ‘committee’ itself was banished from Anfield.

Liverpool have thrived since then because of the collaboration between the football operations. “Smart people in the right positions,” is Klopp’s summary. “We have brilliant people here who make really good proposals and we, as coaches, make good proposals as well. So far, we have found more often than not the right solution for this team.”

There is rather more to it, of course. Where before Klopp there seemed mistrust between departments, there is now cohesion.

Mike Gordon, Fenway Sports Group president, Michael Edwards, the club's sporting director, and Julian Ward, his assistant and soon to be replacement, lead the recruitment process. Once a player has caught Klopp’s eye, or that of his coaches and the talent spotters, Gordon will report back on whether the player is affordable, or the price is in line with the club’s strategy. 

If so, Barry Hunter, the chief scout, and Dave Fallows, head of recruitment, produce background reports, commission thorough data analysis, offer all the most positive and negative feedback and provide video summaries.

Klopp, naturally, is informed each step of the way, and the more scout reports are requested on a player, the more convinced he gets.

“If we have to think about it for a fifth time, it might be that the player goes to another club,” he said, suggesting the fourth complimentary report is the confirmation he needs. “Transfers are a very emotional business for the outside world and a very calculated one for us,” he added.

“Fans think about it with the heart and we have to think about it with the head. What do we need now? What do we need tomorrow? That's the transfer business and it is not so easy.

“It's about timing as well. I am 100 per cent sure that a year later Diogo Jota would have had offers from other top clubs.

“It is similar to Mo [Salah]. If he had played another season at Roma in the same manner, then there probably would have been other clubs in for him.”

Klopp also feels the weight of responsibility in ensuring he minimises financial risk. Unlike those clubs with unlimited resources, Liverpool cannot afford mistakes.

“There is no secret here, but our situation at this club is that our transfers have to hit the ground [running] because we can't make a £40m or £50m signing and say that if they are not playing then that is not important,” said Klopp.

“It's not, as we say in Germany, that we 'swim in money'. It's a wealthy club, there are no problems here, but the policy is clear; we spend what we earn. If we earn more, we can spend more and if we earn less, we spend less. It is not that we cannot do anything, but it is very important that we have to do absolutely the right thing.”

The deals for Diaz and Jota followed the same template as previous signings, where the background work – on this occasion led by Ward as part of the transition to him becoming sporting director this summer – aligned with Klopp’s enthusiasm having seen the player up close for Porto. 

The only hesitancy as such came from an initially prohibitive £60m valuation. Once it dropped to an upfront £37m , Liverpool pushed the accelerator, although Klopp is the first to admit the idea of a ‘bargain transfer’ should be put into context.

“It was not that Ali[sson] was not expensive. But I think today everyone would say, 'Yes, that is the least price I would pay for him if I'd known how good he is',” he said. “That is similar to Virgil, then we have brought Fabinho in, Naby Keïta, Sadio [Mané], Mo...so many players.

“The club have also had some incredible free transfers with [James] Milner and Matip. We brought in some real talents like [Andrew] Robertson. It is just a mix of everything.”

In essence, Liverpool’s recruitment under Klopp has been the perfect execution of checks and balances, enacting a policy of waiting for the right deal even amid the incessant clamour to spend in every transfer window. Figures released this week indicated that over the last 10 years, Liverpool’s net spend has fallen below that of Arsenal, Everton, West Ham United and Aston Villa. For Klopp, it helps that each new recruit is joining a well-drilled unit.

“For all the players it is the same,” said Klopp. “The most important thing for a signing and that a transfer works is that the team they join is in a good place. It helps massively that it is a settled team so the new signing doesn't have to come in and change the world on his first day.”

Liverpool's transfer gurus (don’t call them a committee)

Mike Gordon, FSG president

In charge of the day-to-day running of the club and in many respects Liverpool’s modern day Peter Robinson. Rarely seen, never publicly heard, but now one of the smartest executives in world football with an enviable capacity to resist pressure and sanction deals at the right time.

Michael Edwards, sporting director (until summer 2022)

Edwards may have granted himself a wry smile when there was consternation among fans about his impending departure. Six years ago he was held partially responsible by some for Brendan Rodgers’ exit. He is currently transitioning his summer departure.

Julian Ward, sporting director (from summer 2022)

Ward is currently assistant sporting director, taking on the senior role at the end of the season. Working with Edwards, he led the pursuit of Luis Diaz, and Liverpool anticipate a seamless handover.

Barry Hunter, chief scout 

A former Rushden & Diamonds manager, Northern Irishman Hunter was headhunted by Liverpool from Manchester City shortly after the Fenway Sports Group takeover. Hunter has been integral to Liverpool's recent recruitment successes.

Dave Fallows, head of recruitment

Joined Liverpool alongside Hunter in 2012. Klopp has often credited the backroom team as the driving force behind some of the most successful deals. Hunter and Fallows were among the most persuasive advocates of Liverpool’s move for Mohamed Salah, for example.

Jürgen Klopp, manager

Suffice to say, no player will ever be bought (or sold) without the agreement of the manager. That seemed to be a source of contention at Anfield once. When the recruiters and coach are on the same page, the transfer mistakes are less frequent.

 

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2022/02/11/transfer-committee-chaos-diogo-jota-luis-diaz-liverpool-get/

[Code]

5 hours ago, Mil-ing Around said:

His playing style is nothing like Coutinho's. Phil beat players with lots of trickery and skill. Luis seems to use pace more, mixed with aggressive strength.

 

Diaz was great against us at Anfield, I'm surprised you didn't notice him, he caused us problems all game but especially in the first half

Okay, I take it all back, I bow down to your superior knowledge. 

[Guest Alex_K]

His running style, picking the ball up deep & general combativeness is a little similar to a young Dani Alves

[3 Stacks]

He reminds me of a young Dixie Dean.

[Bobby Hundreds]

He reminds me of an old John Wayne "go ahead punk... I'm your huckleberry". The spit.

[KMD7]

5 hours ago, 3 Stacks said:

He reminds me of a young Code

He's not that good.

[VladimirIlyich]

5 hours ago, 3 Stacks said:

He reminds me of a young Code.

Which one?

[Joey8FrogsLegs]

He reminds me of a fairly young Steve Heighway.

[Aventus]

I kind of disagree with those saying he looks like he's been with us for years.To me he looks a bit nervy and uncomfortable, like he's constantly aware of how big of a step up this is and doesn't want to fuck it up. 

 

That said, he is obviously very talented he has played very well and done a lot of the right things, so I'm not putting him down, if anything I'm extremely excited to see how well he can do once he's settled in properly, if this is what he looks like after one game then imagine what he'll be like in a couple of months and develops some real chemistry with our other forwards, this lad has a very high ceiling. 

 

[Funkasy]

Yeah the praises are over the top so soon. 

[clockspeed]

Just remember arsenal paid 75 million for Pepe , Diaz has done more in two games already. Our scouting is above average 

[Elite]

Can't wait for him to score his first goal 

[Carvalho Diablo]

7 hours ago, Elite said:

Can't wait for him to score his first goal 

You won't have to wait long, Norwich at Anfield on Saturday.

[A_S]

What an ideal start to his Liverpool career. 

 

He's made some really positive contributions before today, then goes and scores a class goal like that. Even better that it wasn't just a stat-padder, but actually killed off what had been a nervy game. 

 

A nice touch from Klopp giving him a chance to feel the love at the end too. 

[polymerpunkah]

The coolness of the finish is a great sign.

 

He's desperate to score, to make an impact, but no panic, just wait for the right moment and chip it over the keeper.

[Anubis]

Great run, great first touch, great finish.