The blockbuster Liverpool and Bayern Munich swap deal that could shatter the summer window
Bayern Munich are pushing to sign a highly-rated Liverpool star this summer
German champions Bayern Munich are expected to resume their efforts to sign Liverpool winger Luis Diaz this summer. The Bundesliga heavyweights made their intentions to sign Diaz clear earlier this summer when they had an offer in the region of £58.5m bid turned down by the English champions earlier this month.
Since then Liverpool have consistently reiterated that their Colombian winger is not for sale. However, The Athletic understand that the 28-year-old wants to leave Anfield this summer for a new challenge.
Barcelona had previously been the favourites to land Diaz but after completing the signing of Marcus Rashford to compete with the likes of Lamine Yamal, Raphinha and Ferran Torres, it no longer appears likely that the Catalan giants will pursue Diaz in this transfer window.
It leaves Bayern as the sole contenders at this stage to secure Diaz’s signature and it’s likely that they’ll return to the table with a fresh offer to replace the recently-departed Leroy Sane, according to the Independent.
Why Liverpool are desperate to retain Luis Diaz
Liverpool were crowned champions of England for just the second time in the Premier League era last term after finishing 10 points clear of nearest challengers Arsenal.
They’ve since established themselves as the top dogs in world football in terms of summer spending, adding the likes of Hugo Ekitike, Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez in one of the most extravagant transfer windows English football has ever seen.
They also thought to remarkably be working on a deal to smash the English transfer record twice in the same year by trying to prise Alexander Isak away from Newcastle United although the Magpies insist the Swede is not for sale. However, Diaz’s departure would leave a huge void on the left-side of Liverpool’s attack and disrupt the balance of the team which has been so heavily weighted around the Colombian.
Diaz scored 17 times and provided eight assists in 50 appearances last term. It marked his best goal scoring season yet at Anfield and proved to be a catalyst in the club’s recent title triumph. The Reds are believed to be determined to keep Diaz but could sell if their £87m valuation is met, with the winger only having two years remaining on his contract.
How Bayern Munich could look to prise Luis Diaz away from Anfield
Bayern Munich have only ever exceeded the £80m mark once in their history when they splashed out £100m on Harry Kane.He was 30-years-old when he moved to the Allianz Arena but in an ideal world Bayern would prefer not to spend upwards of £80m on Diaz when he turns 29 in January.
This could lead to Bayern potentially offering Liverpool a solution in the form of Kingsley Coman, with the Frenchman reportedly wanting a new challenge away from Anfield this summer. Coman is 29-years-old, one year older than Diaz, and has previously been mentioned as a target for both Liverpool and Arsenal by Football Insider.
He’s not quite hit the heights expected of him in recent seasons due to injury but was still part of a title-winning team last year while contributing nine goals and six assists across all competitions. Coman has an overall record of 72 goals and 71 assists in 339 matches and eight incredible seasons at Bayern. He’s a proven winner that has won titles in France, Italy and most significantly nine titles in Germany while also winning the Champions League in 2020.
He’s a player that Bayern could potentially use as a sweetener in the deal to sign Diaz with a significantly smaller transfer fee attached while in turn softening the blow of the Colombian’s exit to the Anfield faithful.