HONG KONG: Luis Diaz was left out of Liverpool’s pre-season defeat to AC Milan as he is in talks for a lucrative move to Bayern Munich.
The Premier League champions, who lost 4-2 to Milan in Hong Kong, are expected to accept a second bid for Diaz after rejecting an initial offer of almost 58.5 million pounds. The Colombia international is believed to be keen to leave Anfield.
He was left out of Liverpool’s 22-man squad on Saturday, and manager Arne Slot confirmed the decision was made in light of the ongoing transfer speculation.
When asked if Diaz’s absence was due to his future, Slot replied: “In Lucho’s situation, yes. There have been a lot of rumours circulating lately and I can’t comment further.
“But he trained very well with us and we decided not to play him for now.”
Asked if Diaz wanted to move, Slot simply said: “I’m not the one to ask.”
Darwin Nunez, whose future is also unclear, was also not fielded in the match, but Slot explained that the Uruguayan player suffered a minor injury.
Wataru Endo and Alexis Mac Allister are also sidelined due to fitness issues, but are expected to be fit for the next match.
Meanwhile, defender Joe Gomez returned to England after injuring his Achilles tendon.
This situation leaves Liverpool with only two fit central defenders, increasing pressure on the club to make additional signings – despite having already spent 295 million pounds in this summer’s transfer window.
In the defeat to Milan, Dominik Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo scored for Liverpool, while Florian Wirtz and 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha were among the positives to be proud of.
Liverpool will fly to Tokyo for the second leg of their pre-season tour of Asia.