Luis Diaz had Colombian media swooning over ‘remarkable’ performance

Luis Diaz had the Colombian media eating out of the palm of his hand after his nation defeated Costa Rica in the Copa America last night.

The Liverpool forward opened the scoring from the penalty spot as his team triumped 3-0, thus booking their place in the quarter-finals with a group game to spare, and his overall performance came in for plenty of praise back home.

Felipe Molina wrote in AS: ‘He was one of the best because of his persistence and because they could never stop him’, while Daniel Zabala of Antena2 hailed the 27-year-old’s ‘speed and cunning’.

In Futbol Red, the ‘remarkable’ Diaz was praised for an ‘outrageous physical display’, while a joint editorial in El Colombiano mentioned how he’s become ‘a key player with his ability to unbalance [the opposition], allowing the national team to breathe when he has the ball’.

READ MORE: (Video) Alisson produces lightning quick reflexes to deny Paraguay certain goal in Brazil win

READ MORE: (Video) Top bins: Luis Diaz gives goalkeeper no chance as he nets in emphatic Colombia win

Aside from his expertly taken penalty, there was plenty else to like about the Liverpool man’s performance for Colombia.

As per Sofascore, he misplaced only three passes, won six duels, completed both of his attempted dribbles, played four key passes and created one ‘big chance’.

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On the club front, Diaz continues to be coveted by Barcelona (TEAMtalk), and it’s easy to see why after another convincing display for his nation on top of the impressive form that he showed for Liverpool towards the end of last season.

His Copa America displays might help to drive up his market value and earn an extra few million quid for the Reds if they were to cash in, but at the same time, Arne Slot surely won’t want to lose such a valuable player so soon into his time as head coach at Anfield.

The ideal scenario from our perspective is for the 27-year-old to continue shining at the Copa America and carry over that form into the 2024/25 campaign for LFC and not anyone else.

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