Daniel Levy “did everything he could” to sign Luis Diaz for Tottenham Hotspur this January, but a report has revealed why Liverpool beat them to the transfer.
It was a busy end to the transfer window for Tottenham; they signed Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski in a double deal from Juventus. They could have had another new face, though, had they had their way with Luis Diaz.
Tottenham were in talks for the Colombian attacker. But he eventually joined Liverpool instead.
Diaz is now competing for a place in the Liverpool frontline alongside the likes of Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and others.
But he could have been wearing the Tottenham shirt instead after a report shed light on how close Spurs were to the transfer.
According to The Athletic, Tottenham found agreements with both Diaz and his former club Porto to sign him. That came before he headed off for international duty, though, after which there was a twist.
While Diaz was away, one of his Colombian agents effectively vetoed the move. That was because Porto gave Jorge Mendes a mandate to oversee the Spurs switch; Diaz’s representative objected.
Meanwhile, Liverpool – who were originally lining up Diaz for the summer – took their chance to swoop in. They did not use Mendes as an intermediary.
Upon Diaz’s arrival at Anfield, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp explained how he would only sign players in January if they are ones who the club would be interested in during the summer – and Diaz fit in with that strategy.
Klopp’s presence, incidentally, was a factor in convincing Diaz to join Liverpool. Furthermore, the fact they have Champions League football and Tottenham do not helped.
But Diaz had also been “enthusiastic” about Tottenham’s interest, the report claims. In turn, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy is supposedly “raging” that the deal fell through.
Tottenham had signed paperwork over a €45m plus €15m deal with Porto. In the end, though, it was Liverpool who took him for reportedly the same figures.
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It is not just figures at Tottenham who have a bitter taste about Diaz joining Liverpool.
Sergio Conceicao, coach of his former club Porto, has now lost a crucial element of his title challenge. Indeed, he was not the only player to leave Porto last month either.
Conceicao reportedly received promises Porto would not sell Diaz mid-season. It prompted the following response from the manager after their most recent match.
“In big companies and big clubs, planning is done according to the objectives. When there is little or no planning, we have to review the goals and think about the near future,” Conceicao told SIC Noticias, via Sport Witness.
“I’m demanding and, at the moment, the truth is that it’s more difficult, but it’s part of my job to find solutions. It’s looking to the future and realising that our goals may become more difficult to achieve.
“We’re talking about four important players who have left in recent years, including Corona, Sergio Oliveira and Luis Diaz, who were among the best players in the league in recent years and had their weight in the team.
“Today there were two full-backs, two goalkeepers, two defenders and two boys from the academy on the bench. It’s part of my job, to find solutions in a very difficult situation. Clearly the financial aspect was stronger than sporting success.”
Porto, for what it’s worth, remain top of the Portuguese Primeira Liga. They have a nine-point lead over Sporting, who have played one game fewer.
READ MORE: Braga chief cites five reasons why ‘best player in the league’ Diaz will light-up Liverpool
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