Luis Diaz to Barcelona moves one step closer

Liverpool forward Luis Diaz appears to have taken a step closer to Barcelona. The Reds will face a fight to keep him.

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Luis Diaz could leave Liverpool in 2025. That much is clear.

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The Colombian reportedly rejected a new contract this season, not liking the terms Liverpool offered. It's a point of contention for Diaz, too, as he remains on the same deal he signed three years ago.

That's rare at Liverpool. The Reds like to sign players up on relatively low terms but with bonuses in there. Contracts can grow rapidly - if you perform well enough.

It's debatable whether Diaz has done that. What isn't debatable, though, is that he's underpaid relative to other players on his level.

He's supposedly on around £40k per week, with Cody Gakpo, for example, earning £100k more than that. It leaves Diaz somewhat justified in thinking about an exit.

And Barcelona may be in a position to give him just that.

Luis Diaz to Barcelona

Barcelona are weighing up a new forward right now. It's been reported in Spain that their search for one led to Marcus Rashford being on the agenda and they looked at a potential loan move in the current transfer window.

But it was made clear that Rashford wasn't their first choice - he was just the only one on the shortlist available mid-season. One player above him on that shortlist was Diaz.

Diaz, though, was never moving mid-season. Any move would need to happen in the summer and so it's interesting that Barcelona have pulled out of a move for Rashford.

Per the Manchester Evening News, Rashford is now heading to Aston Villa on loan. Barcelona apparently told Manchester United that they wouldn't pursue a loan right now but would look at a permanent move in the summer.

They're looking at buying a new forward, then. If they're looking at Rashford, they're supposedly looking more at Diaz.

The decision at Barcelona to not pursue Rashford leaves the door wide open for Diaz. In fact, it makes it a lot more likely to happen as they're not spending any money this month and they're not looking themselves into any buy options.

It's entirely possible, if the reports are to be believed, that this is a sign that Barcelona will chase Diaz. After all, any potential move for Rashford would allegedly come after a move for Liverpool's forward.

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