Arne Slot ‘to consider Luis Diaz change’ after Liverpool win v Ipswich
Arne Slot has done most things right since taking over Liverpool in the summer, but his decision to start Luis Diaz against Ipswich Town certainly backfired.
The Reds faced Ipswich Town at home on Saturday (25 January), with Dominik Szoboslzlai, Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo getting on the scoresheet in a 4-1 win.
Gakpo’s brace playing from the left wing showcased how far he’s come since his move to Anfield in January 2023.
The Merseyside outfit maintained their lead at the top of the Premier League table and are six points ahead of Arsenal with one game in hand.
While most of the team thrived against the Tractor Boys, Diaz had another afternoon to forget as he played in the number nine position.
Luis Diaz had off day in Liverpool win v Ipswich Town
While the Colombian has featured as a centre-forward on multiple occasions this season, his blunder at Anfield against Ipswich — registering a combined xG and xA of 0.03 as per FotMob — highlighted a potential issue in the Reds’ front line.
Diaz failed to make an impact, creating zero chances, completing just 57 per cent of his dribbles and was dispossessed four times.
The 28-year-old also lost possession 14 times during his 86 minutes on the pitch, winning only five of his 14 duels and committing two fouls, as per Sofascore.
Darwin Nunez had to come on and save the day as Liverpool beat Brentford 2-0 on 18 January, but the Uruguayan wasn’t needed as Slot’s team had control this time around.
The Colombia international arguably plays his best football on the left-hand side of the attack, but Gakpo has cemented his place there after some impressive displays.
While Diaz can be excused for not having the necessary impact recently, as he’s not a natural number nine, the forward needs to do more in the position.
Will Slot recognise the 28-year-old’s struggles and change the system a bit to help the Colombian play a more pivotal role? Time will tell.
In other Liverpool news, a move has been made to bring Joshua Kimmich to Anfield now.
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