Liverpool FC, not Tottenham, is reportedly on the cusp of taking in Luis Diaz from Porto. The Reds are said to be in pole position after reportedly making a bid of £45 million ($60.35 million) that was better than the £37 million ($49.6 million) that HotSpur offered.
The update comes from Sky Sports which added that Diaz preferred a move to Liverpool where he would be reunited with Jurgen Klopp.
The 25-year-old was at the top of Klopp’s list of summer transfer targets but it appears Liverpool decided to acquire him earlier.
The reason seen behind this is that Liverpool feared that Diaz could join other teams who were also keeping tabs on his status. So rather than miss out on the Colombian, the Reds accelerated their plans with the deal possibly getting completed in the coming days.
Diaz is currently seeing action for the Colombia national team for World Cup qualifying matches. They are set to play Peru on Friday and then Argentina next Tuesday.
BBC adds that Liverpool has already sent a delegation to Argentina to conduct a medical on David. This is to seal the deal before the January transfer window ends on Jan. 31.
Ironically, Diaz saw action twice against Liverpool in the Champions League this season. Porto lost both matches.
Porto failed to advance, finishing behind Liverpool and Atletico Madrid in their group. Regardless, they are at the top of the Portuguese division. Diaz has scored 14 goals and issued five assists in 18 league appearances.
Once the deal is done, it is considered a big coup for Julian Ward who takes over as Liverpool sporting director once Michael Edwards leaves in the summer.
Ward had led on the move for Diaz with Edwards providing an important role in supporting that push.
For Tottenham, this development means they will have to look for other prospects. Time is not on their side with the transfer window closing on Monday. Before Luiz, the Spurs also fell short in their chase for Adama Traore.
Tottenham has been linked to Morocco midfielder Sofyan Amrabat from Fiorentina, someone they could get on loan with an option to buy later on.
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