"Only going to get better" - Pundit on who will replace Sadio Mane

Former Tottenham player Alan Hutton has said that winger Luis Diaz can become Sadio Mane's replacement next season.

With Mane joining Bayern Munich this summer, a lot of people are wondering who will replace him.

However, one pundit believes that Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp already signed Mane's replacement back in January.

“I think Diaz has shown that he can," Hutton told Football Insider.

“He’s so young, he hit the ground running, we all thought that he was going to sign for Liverpool and he was going to take his time to settle in but no, he was thrown straight into the mix, he started to become a regular and we saw why. He was so good.

“Now he’s into his second season, he knows what it’s all about, I think he’s only going to get better.

“I don’t think it’s a huge problem, Mane leaving, because they’ve got people coming through that are going to take that weight.

“(Darwin) Nunez is new to the league, it’s going to take him time to settle in, he’s a number nine, he wants to score goals and hopefully he can do that for them. He just needs to get off to a good start.“

Anfield Watch Verdict

I don't think the club expected Diaz to come straight in and perform so well. They probably wanted the Colombian to be Mane's understudy for several months and then replace him in the long-term.

However, the 25-year-old hit the ground running and he forced Klopp to finish the season with the Senegalese forward playing as a striker.

With Darwin Nunez coming in this summer, I think he'll play up top with Mohamed Salah and Diaz.

Who knows what Klopp has planned though. The German has so many options at his disposal, which is certainly a good thing.

The team news on the opening day of the Premier League season will be interesting.