Former Manchester City player praises Diaz: "He can be the player of the year"

Stuart Pearce analyzed the Colombian's play during the Community Shield match and stated that if Diaz improves his scoring power he can surpass what Sadio Mané did for Liverpool.

04/08/2022, 05:52 PM +00:00

Liverpool Football Club started the new season on the right foot against its strongest rival, Manchester City. In the Community Shield they managed to win the first title of this campaign and established themselves as one of the favorite teams to fight for all the remaining trophies. With a score of 3-1 in favor, the Reds overpowered Pep Guardiola's team, who were once again disappointed.

The new generation of the Anfield team did their part to beat City, both Luis Díaz and Darwin Núñez left their mark on the match and, according to ex-footballer Stuart Pearce, Sadio Mané's departure will not matter so much if they keep playing like this. Pearce made special reference to the Colombian, whom he placed as one of the players who could be in the spotlight this season.

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“Will Liverpool miss Mané? Of course, but I think Diaz could be a slightly better player and a better goalscorer. I think he could be a special player this year. What a talent... I think Diaz could be player of the year. I was very impressed with Diaz last season, how he started running, his goals, his effort. He's almost unbreakable on the ball, I really like him”.

Likewise, he referred to the new attacking trident formed by the Merseyside team. The former Manchester City player affirmed that Liverpool should not be underestimated, especially considering that they have three of the fastest players in Europe in their attacking line: "Before the game started, people dismissed Liverpool, but after seeing them for 90 minutes with Nuñez, Salah and Diaz in form, you think: 'Wow'".

One missing piece for Diaz

The one missing piece for Luis Diaz to become the perfect successor to Senegal's Sadio Mané is to improve his eye for goal. While he has only recently arrived at Liverpool and could find the back of the net with ease, on several occasions, he has lacked both accuracy and opportunism.