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Luis Diaz's form for Liverpool eases pressure on Mohamed Salah's contract talks, says Gary Neville

Gary Neville on Luis Diaz's arrival, Mohamed Salah's contract and Liverpool's forward-looking recruitment policy: "Great clubs don't just build for three years, they have that next player to come in and that's what Liverpool are doing here"

The Colombian international scored one goal and assisted another in Tuesday night's 4-0 demolition of Manchester United
Image: The Colombia international scored one goal and assisted another in Tuesday night's 4-0 demolition of Manchester United

Luis Diaz's form since his January move to Liverpool has eased the pressure on Mohamed Salah's contract situation at Anfield, according to Gary Neville.

The Colombia forward joined the club from Porto on January 30, signing a five-and-a-half-year deal for an initial £37m - with the fee potentially rising to £49m.

Diaz has scored three goals and provided one assist in his eight Premier League appearances so far, and impressed in Tuesday night's 4-0 demolition of Manchester United.

While Salah is close to agreeing a new contract to extend his stay on Merseyside, his current deal expires in June 2023 and he told Sky Sports earlier this month: "I can't be selfish and talk about my situation. We are in the most important period for the team."

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 19: Mohamed Salah of Liverpool celebrates scoring his teams second goal and his one hundred and fiftieth for the club with team mate Luis Diaz  during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Norwich City at Anfield on February 19, 2022 in Liverpool, United Kingdom. (Photo by Joe Prior/Visionhaus via Getty Images) ***Local Caption*** Mohamed Salah; Luis Diaz
Image: Luis Diaz's form since his January move to Liverpool has eased the pressure on Mohamed Salah's contract situation at Anfield, according to Gary Neville

And speaking on The Gary Neville Podcast, Neville said the decision to go for Diaz in January was further evidence of Liverpool's smart planning.

He said: "The Carabao Cup final was the first time I had seen the lad live. He is playing off the left-hand side and I look at it from a right-back's perspective, so I think I've got a pretty good eye about what I would have liked and what I wouldn't have liked. And I thought: 'Oh my God. What a player he is.'

"His tenacity, his skill, his pace, his fight, his spirit - everything. They have found another one and, again, he has not cost a lot.

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"Liverpool acted [to sign him in January] because Spurs were probably going to nip in; they were probably going to wait until the end of the season. Now Liverpool have got five strikers that are genuinely world class. All five of them are, honestly.

"Roberto Firmino has been one of my favourites for the last five or six years. I know he's the one that is understated and the one that is underrated at times, but for me, he has contributed unbelievable amounts to the performance levels of the club in terms of how he has dove-tailed.

"I always think of players that I appreciated at United so much that maybe didn't get the headlines, but were so important to how the team connected and how the team glued together - I think Firmino has done that. He's still there and he's performing well at this moment in time.

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Mohamed Salah says now is not the time to be selfish and talk about his contract as he focuses on Liverpool's Premier League title run-in

"Diogo Jota has been a sensation from the moment he signed; the other two are world stars: Mo Salah and Sadio Mane. And Diaz looks like a star of the future which, actually, in some ways, takes a little bit of the pressure off the Salah situation, that they have got someone there ready to come in. That's what great clubs do, they have a conveyor belt.

"What Sir Alex Ferguson did for many years was get the next one ready so that no one was holding the club to ransom. Great clubs don't just build for three years, they have that next player to come in and that's what Liverpool are doing here."

Analysis: Inside the rise of Luis Diaz

Luis Diaz is already shining for Liverpool following his £49m move from Porto but he almost slipped through the net as an underweight teenager in an impoverished region of Colombia.

In conversation with Sky Sports, his former coaches reveal how he overcame severe adversity to reach the top. They explain:

  • Why he went unnoticed by clubs until the age of 18
  • How he was spotted among 3,000 young hopefuls
  • How the Copa America of Indigenous Peoples fuelled his rise
  • Why doctors discouraged coaches from picking him
  • How he moved to Europe and became Colombia's "jewel"
Inside the rise of Luis Diaz
Inside the rise of Luis Diaz

Find out how an underweight teenager from one of Colombia's poorest regions became a Premier League star with Liverpool.

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