Liverpool may have indirectly provided one Manchester United player with a significant boost over the past few hours.
While every club will have their own priorities in the transfer window, many proposed transactions can have a domino effect whereby one deal going through could be the trigger for another to follow suit.
The Reds were involved in a recent example of that as they sold Caoimhin Kelleher to Brentford within hours of the Bees confirming the exit of Mark Flekken to Bayer Leverkusen, whose playmaker Florian Wirtz is reportedly on the verge of completing a big-money move to Anfield.
In another case study of the various moving parts of prospective transfers, FSG’s stance on one current member of Arne Slot’s squad could have positive implications for a player at Old Trafford.
Barcelona could seek to lure Rashford from Man United after Diaz rejection
On Thursday morning, David Ornstein reported for The Athletic that Liverpool have rebuffed an approach from Barcelona for Luis Diaz and are even prepared to lose the Colombian on a free transfer in two years’ time if they can’t agree a contract extension for him before his current deal expires.
The LaLiga champions could duly divert their search for a left-sided attacker towards Marcus Rashford, with the Man United winger reportedly a ‘big target’ for Camp Nou sporting director Deco (Marca, via Football Espana).
The England international is rumoured to be yearning for a move to Hansi Flick’s side over the summer, having wanted to sign for them in the January transer window before going to Aston Villa on loan, and he’s even willing to take a pay cut if it’d faciliate a swith to Catalonia.
Could Liverpool keeping Diaz trigger bonus of Rashford leaving United?
Liverpool are unsurprisingly in no mood to entertain offers for Diaz after his 17-goal haul during the recently concluded campaign and still have time to strike an agreement over a new contract for him, and the possible implications on their biggest rivals further underline why FSG are right to stand firm over the Colombian.
Rashford’s fortunes may have declined since his 30-goal season in 2022/23, with the forward scoring just 19 times in the subsequent two years and falling out of favour under Ruben Amorim, but his exit from Man United would still weaken the Reds’ fiercest foes.
The 27-year-old also has an annoyingly prolific record when facing LFC – his tally of seven goals against us is the second-most he’s plundered against any one opponent and includes a decisive brace at Old Trafford in March 2018 and what ultimately proved to be the winner in a 2-1 victory in August 2022.
Barcelona may have been given a stern ‘hands-off’ message from Liverpool regarding Diaz, but their prospective courting of the Red Devils’ number 10 could yield a different outcome, especially with the player seemingly having his heart set on a move to Camp Nou.
If, by keeping hold of the Colombian, LFC can indirectly contribute towards a headline departure from Man United, that’d surely provide added satisfaction for many Kopites!
