View: Luis Diaz must step up for Liverpool as he struggles again for Colombia
Liverpool attacker Luis Diaz was part of Colombia’s squad against Argentina as they lost 1-0 in the Copa America final overnight on 15 July.
Despite Diaz not being at his best throughout the vast majority of the tournament, his home country managed to find their way to the final.
It was always going to be a big ask for Colombia to triumph over World Champions, Argentina.
Luis Diaz Copa America final performance in statistics
Alongside the likes of Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez, the left-winger was quite heavily reprimanded throughout the 2023/24 season due to his poor form.
The 27-year-old played a total of 51 times for Liverpool last season and only managed to contribute to 18 goals.
This is all whilst being deployed in his favoured position of left-wing too. Despite his poor form, Diaz has managed to rack up interest from clubs across the world.
Those with the strongest interest, however, are Barcelona [AS, 25 May]. The club are vying for the addition of a left-winger this summer to provide Lamine Yamal with some competition.
Although rumours have been shared, nothing has yet come to fruition and for now, at least, it feels as if the Colombia international will be staying in Merseyside.
But, following his below-par Copa America performance and in particular the final, he may have a lot of work to do to regain his starting spot.
As per Sofascore, the winger started the Copa America final and was deployed in his favoured position on the left.
However, despite being a key outlet for the attack of Los Cafeteros, he failed to spend much time in the opposition box.
This is shown through his heatmap where he seems to have spent the vast majority of his time just above the halfway line, completing only 42 touches.
And, although the vast majority of his game was spent on the flank, according to Sofascore, he failed to even register a single cross.
With this in mind, you’d think that Diaz would have managed to get some shots or successful dribbles completed throughout the tie, but, in fact, he only had one shot the entire game.
This resulted in the Colombia international receiving an xG of 0.02 and in terms of assists, his return wasn’t much better.
Despite making one key pass and garnering a 92 per cent pass accuracy during the tie, he only generated a total xA (expected assists) of 0.03.
Not only does this show how unthreatening he was in front of the goal but it also outlines how little of an impact he had on the pitch.
Luis Diaz display could have impact on Liverpool future
No matter who you are as a player, there’s no doubt that you’d want to impress your new manager before the start of the season.
Arne Slot has taken over from Jurgen Klopp and will no doubt be eyeing up his best players to start the Reds’ first game at Ipswich.
Those who have played internationally will likely be the easiest for the Netherlands manager to judge as he has seen them play recently.
And, in the case of Diaz, his poor showing across Copa America, specifically the final could cost him his starting spot.
Especially since Nunez had a fairly strong tournament and could be on course to revive his Liverpool career.
As per Sofascore, the left-winger only touched the ball a total of 42 times despite playing for 105 minutes.
Of the five dribbles he attempted during the tie, he only managed to complete 20% of them (1).
Despite being a regular starter for Klopp, it’s a certainty that Diaz will have a lot to prove to Slot for him to regain his role in the team.
In terms of defensive work, he only won 10.5 per cent of his duels and somehow managed to lose possession a grand total of 12 times whilst also committing five fouls.
The Copa America tournament was supposed to be one where Diaz showcased his talent and made his case to the Reds as to why they should keep him.
It unfortunately hasn’t ended up like that and now his Liverpool future could potentially be in the balance.
In other Liverpool news, Caoimhin Kelleher has made an admission about his career ahead of the 2024/25 season.
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