Klopp: Diaz impact not far from a miracle

“You don’t expect miracles immediately from these kind of players,” Jurgen Klopp tells Sky Sports. “But he is not far away from doing exactly that. Long may it continue.”

The Liverpool manager is talking about Luis Diaz, the January signing from Porto who has done more than score twice in the Premier League - he has shifted the dynamic in the title race. Jamie Carragher thinks Liverpool are favourites because of his arrival.

Had Diaz needed more time to adapt to his new surroundings, that would have been understandable. Klopp himself acknowledges that. "Every coach would say the same about a January signing. You do it, but if you could, you would do it in the summer."

The Colombian deserves the credit. "Absolutely," insists Klopp. But it also reveals something about Liverpool's recruitment - both the player identification and the subsequent work that is done once the player is inside the building to ensure a seamless transition.

"There is a reason why you sign a player. The reason is the quality that he has. The reason is the way that he is playing the game." But with Diaz, as with so many of Liverpool's signings, there was a logic to targeting him beyond his ability - they believed he would adapt.

"With Luis, where it has been really special is that when we saw him we knew that he would fit in immediately," explains Klopp. "That is really difficult usually but because he did not have to change, that is why we have a really confident boy here.

"He was in a really good moment with Porto, playing good for Colombia, and so he came here full of confidence. But what we tried to make sure is that he does not lose that because of the playbook as we tell him that he has to do this and he has to do that.

"We want him to be