Newcastle United’s January switch window proved to be an infinite raise for Eddie Howe’s facet, and it was no shock to see the membership lastly decide up the sort of kind wanted to flee from the Premier League’s relegation clutches.
The likes of Kieran Trippier and Chris Wooden added some much-needed battle-hardened top-flight expertise, whereas Bruno Guimaraes got here in from Lyon having garnered an actual repute as a bona-fide star in French soccer.
However whereas numerous the Magpies’ January signings have performed their half in main the Tyneside membership out of hassle, they could look again a bit ruefully at one identify they didn’t handle to signal: Luis Diaz.
Based on A Bola (via Sport Witness), the Magpies had been one of many golf equipment curious about signing the Colombia worldwide within the January window earlier than it was later claimed that the Howe’s facet had really despatched scouts to look at Porto’s 1-0 win over SC Braga to see the 24-year-old in motion – the winger would find yourself scoring the winner.
Regardless of seeing him shine in individual and having had curiosity in him for numerous months, maybe even longer, Newcastle opted to not act on it, and as an alternative watched Spurs, then Liverpool make big-money bids for him in the direction of the closing levels of January.
Ultimately, it was Jurgen Klopp’s facet who got here out victorious within the race to signal him, snapping him up for a reported charge of £37.5m – simply barely extra than the preliminary quantity they paid to signal Guimaraes.
And whenever you take a look at how Diaz has carried out this season, each for Porto and now for Liverpool, not getting him in January looks like an actual missed alternative.
The 31-cap Colombia worldwide was in scintillating kind for his former facet Porto this season, registering a really spectacular 16 goals and six assists in solely 29 appearances for the Liga NOS giants.
Following the change to Anfield, Diaz has netted an additional three objectives and offered one help, together with nodding throughout for Sadio Mane within the current Champions League victory over Benfica within the quarter-finals.
Now valued at £60m by CIES, the 5 foot 10 star has been dubbed a “livewire” and as being “phenomenal” by Portuguese soccer skilled Alex Goncalves
Lacking out on Diaz is made all of the harder given how reports have not too long ago emerged saying Newcastle could be keen to let one in all their star males and fellow wide-man Allan Saint-Maximin go away in the summertime switch window.
If that’s to be the case, then bringing in Diaz would have off-set that potential departure significantly.
The person with 64 profession objectives to his identify would have been an impressive signing for the Magpies had they pushed for him earlier than Liverpool got here in.
AND in different information, Wooden improve: PIF might be having NUFC nightmares after lacking out on £20m “cult hero”…