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Former Liverpool winger Luis Diaz has revealed the chat that he had with Florian Wirtz before he departed Anfield to sign for Bayern Munich this summer.
Diaz was sold for a fee that could reach $88 million (£66 million), an excellent price for a player who only had two years left on his contract and had first expressed a desire to move on a year earlier. So far in the Bundesliga, he has scored eight times and set up another five goals for his teammates in 14 appearances in all competitions.
"[Wirtz] told me that in the league there was a lot of intensity and that there were great teams," Diaz told ESPN Colombia.
"The stadiums are always full. He told me that I was going to enjoy it a lot and that I was going to do very well. For that, I thanked him."
While Diaz moved to Bayern Munich, Wirtz rejected the German giant in favor of joining Arne Slot at Liverpool. So far, the 22-year-old has been adjusting to life in the Premier League without fully igniting.
Though Wirtz is yet to score or assist in the Premier League, he did create a couple of goals in the Champions League in the 5-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt.
"If you've been brought in for so much money, people look mainly at goals and assists, but I can tell you he could be on six or seven assists already," Slot told Sky Sports ahead of facing Manchester United earlier this month.
"If you look at the passes he's played to his team-mates which unfortunately didn't lead to goals, one of the greatest examples is the Chelsea game where after one minute [since coming on] he had this great flick to Mo Salah.
"For Mo, this is 99 times out of 100 a goal. I have to say 98 out of 100 because the last time he got a ball like this was against Atletico Madrid from Florian, but Mo hit the post.
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"He's been a bit unlucky with the finishing when he's given his teammates chances but, in general for a 22-year-old, it's quite normal that you have to adjust to going to another country, let alone going to the Premier League.
"Maybe I'm now underestimating the best midfielder who has ever played in the Premier League, Kevin De Bruyne, he was 21 or 22 when he went to Chelsea.
"Give him a bit of time, I would say. I'm definitely going to give him a bit of time and in the meantime, he's been unlucky."
Liverpool.com says: Diaz doing so well in Germany doesn't mean that the Reds made a mistake in selling him. They got a good price for a 28-year-old, but now need to find the right balance with the players who came in.
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