Unconventional Luiz Diaz transfer can breathe new life into Liverpool frontline

Recruiting new players for Liverpool is not an easy task thanks to the demands which Jurgen Klopp places upon his team.

Where can you possibly hope to find a right-back who plays like Trent Alexander-Arnold, or a goalkeeper who can sweep up with the calm authority of Alisson Becker, for example? There aren’t many such players out there.

It’s a similar story at the attacking end of the team, in the sense that there’s aren’t many sides who routinely play a front three. Diogo Jota had done so with Nuno Espirito Santo’s frequent use of a 3-4-3 formation but players with similar experience are not ten a penny.

But this is where the recruitment team’s ability to think outside the box with their targets comes into play, and it’s possible they may have identified a Liverpool forward of the future.

The Reds are poised to complete a deal for Porto winger Luis Diaz, as they hijacked Tottenham Hotspur's £49 million pursuit of the player.

The 24-year-old is a left midfielder in Sergio Conceicao’s 4-4-2 formation, so it isn’t immediately apparent how he would fit into the Reds’ tactical framework.

However, a closer look at his statistics shows the profile of a player who is more comfortable shooting rather than creating, suggesting he could play as a wide forward.

For instance, Sadio Mane has taken 1.6 shots for every chance he has created in the Premier League for Liverpool. Mohamed Salah’s average for the Reds is 2.0, but Diaz is currently at 2.1 (albeit he only has 70 league games in Portugal under his belt at this point).

And while this might lead to the unfounded accusations of selfishness which seem to have plagued Salah at times, Diaz has set up more chances per 90 minutes with each passing season at Porto, so his balance