Liverpool appear to have confirmed Luis Diaz‘s return to full training ahead of the Reds’ trip to Man City.
It’s been nearly six months since we’ve seen Diaz in Liverpool red, but the Colombian should be in the squad on Saturday at the Etihad after he returned to training this week.
The club posted a video on Twitter of Diaz walking out with his team-mates at the AXA Training Centre on Thursday, with reports this week suggesting he had already returned to full training.
Darwin Nunez was also part of the squad in training, recovering from a cut ankle that ruled him out of Uruguay duty.
? @LuisFDiaz19 ? pic.twitter.com/WpQIcl6W0V
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) March 30, 2023
The winger was originally due to return from a knee injury after the World Cup, but a setback at the Reds’ Dubai training camp meant he needed surgery and has therefore not played since the 3-2 defeat at Arsenal on October 10.
Before his injury, Diaz was arguably Liverpool’s most important player this season, with four goals in 12 appearances.
Perhaps his most notable moment was his second-half equaliser against Crystal Palace at Anfield.
In the Colombian’s absence, Nunez has been the man to fill the left-wing spot and has impressed of late in that position.
When Diaz does return to the team properly, it may cause a rejig in attack as Jurgen Klopp tries to keep all his forwards happy.
After six months, we shouldn’t expect to see him back in the starting XI on Saturday, or indeed against Chelsea or Arsenal next week.
It would be unwise to throw him straight back into a packed schedule without building his fitness first, but if Diaz back to anywhere near his level of last season, the Reds will have a much better chance of finishing in the top four, that’s for sure.
A welcome return, to say the least, and a nice tactical headache for Klopp to contend with in attack.
Klopp will hold his pre-match press conference ahead of Man City on Friday at 1.30pm.
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