Luis Diaz moved to Liverpool in the January 2022 transfer window, in a big move for both the player and FC Porto.
Multiple Premier League clubs scout Porto on a regular basis, so Diaz was well known as a potential transfer target.
Tottenham Hotspur were quickly in the picture to sign him, as they often are with emerging stars in Portugal, but they weren’t able to agree a deal, again as is often the case with Spurs, and saw another club push ahead of them.
Jurgen Klopp secured the Colombian international and he’s been a success at Liverpool so far, also becoming the go-to player for his national side, taking things on from the previous generation of James Rodriquez and Radamel Falcao.
Diaz has often explained how he feels he owes a lot to Porto. They were his first club in Europe and turned him from a prospect who wasn’t thought to be a sure bet of success, into a player ready for the Premier League.
On Saturday evening, he spoke to the Portuguese media after Liverpool’s match and made clear Porto still have a big place in his heart.
O Jogo quote him as saying: “I always thank them, they were the ones who gave me the opportunity to make the leap from Colombia to Europe. A very big club where I was very happy, things went the way I wanted and dreamed.
“Yesterday, I was watching the game [against Estrela da Amadora] at the hotel. I always try to keep up. May they achieve all the goals they have set. I congratulate them on having a good start to the season.”
Maybe not in the next few years, but at one point perhaps Diaz could return to Porto, the same way Angel Di Maria has with Benfica.
