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Luis Diaz’s future is proving to be the rumor that just won’t go away, and speculation is only growing now after Liverpool’s latest preseason game.
The Reds hosted Championship side Stoke City in a behind-closed-doors game at the AXA Training Centre in Kirkby as the players got more minutes into their legs ahead of jetting off on their pre-season tour of Asia.
Florian Wirtz made his first appearance since completing his move from Bayer Leverkusen, while Darwin Nunez was on fire with a first-half hat-trick during a 5-0 win, but it was Diaz who most Liverpool fans were talking about after the game.
Speculation is rife over the Colombian’s future, with Bayern Munich pushing to sign him this summer. The German giant has already had a bid turned down, although it is expected to lodge an improved offer soon.
What’s more, Diaz hasn’t exactly put the speculation to bed, having given an unconvincing answer about his future last week when he was questioned about the possibility of him leaving Anfield.
And the speculation is growing even more now, with fans sharing a picture supposedly showing a teamsheet from Sunday’s behind-closed-doors game indicating that Diaz wasn’t named in the squad.
It should be noted that the picture is unverified, but it has been shared by a lot of Liverpool supporters, who feel it could be a sign that Diaz’s future might be in doubt.
The winger had been in training during the week leading up to the friendly, having not played in the opening game of the summer against Preston last week.
With Bayern plotting a new bid, though, all eyes will be on the 28-year-old as Liverpool continues its pre-season preparations.
The supposed teamsheet also showed that goalkeeper Alisson Becker and midfielder Alexis Mac Allister were not involved against Stoke, with the latter raising concerns after not featuring in any of club’s footage coming from training over the past week.
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Nunez set the Reds on their way to victory with a first-half hat-trick, which will give Arne Slot plenty to think about for the remainder of the summer as the Uruguayan continues to be linked with an exit.
Teenager Rio Ngumoha was also on the scoresheet during the first half, further enhancing his growing reputation after impressing against Preston the previous week.
Federico Chiesa rounded off the scoring after the break, with the Italian also linked with a move this summer.
Liverpool is now due to fly out to Hong Kong ahead of facing AC Milan on July 26, before heading to Japan to face Yokohama F Marinos on July 30.
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