New sponsorship deal draws Liverpool closer to retaining star forward amid Barcelona interest | OneFootball

Liverpool star Luis Diaz has been heavily linked with an exit from the club in the last few months, with none other than Barcelona named as his preferred destination. The situation has arisen due to a dead end in contract negotiations, but it a recent shift could now unblock those talks.

Diaz joined Liverpool from Porto for €53m in January of 2022, and helped the Reds to reach the Champions League final in his first season. At 28 years of age now though, and with just two years remaining on the initial deal that he signed, he is likely facing his last major contract. Liverpool are equally faced with the choice of handing that to him, or looking to sell the Colombian star.

If they cannot reach a new deal, it seems more than likely Liverpool would entertain offers for Diaz, so as not to sink his value if he gets to the final year of his contract. Reports in his native Colombia have noted that Barcelona would be his favoured destination, and that he is keen on a move, while Blaugrana Director of Football Deco seemingly sees him as the ideal option on the left side of Barcelona’s attack.

Image via Westmeath Examiner

Yet Sport explain that Liverpool have been given a boost in their hopes of retaining him. Recently Liverpool reached and agreement with Adidas to become their main kit sponsor from next season, a shift that could impact negotiations with Diaz. The Colombia international is one of their figureheads in Latin America, and the Catalan daily reference talk in Colombia that this could be the push to restart negotiations for Liverpool and Diaz.

Were Diaz to move to Barcelona, Adidas would see one of their major star brand names wearing a Nike shirt twice a week. Sponsors can often be influential in transfer dealings, with James Rodriguez’s spell at Rayo Vallecano a clear example: the Colombian’s wages were funded in no small part by specific deals with Colombian brands for the duration of his time in Vallecas.