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Written by Martin Graham | May 8, 2022
Manchester United interim manager Ralph Rangnick has claimed that the club’s hierarchy has prevented a possible transfer of former Porto winger Luis Diaz, who is currently at Liverpool.
The Colombian joined the Reds in January after Jurgen Klopp hijacked his signature deal from Tottenham Hotspur and established himself as the signature for the season in just under six months as the red man.
He had to adapt his playing style to focus on his speed and strength rather than his technique and ball skills which he relied so much on to beat players while in Portugal. However, the 25-year-old has expertly done so and infused his skill on the ball into his new style of play.
The Colombian has sparked a media rave in England, and Manchester United interim manager Rangnick bemoaned his superiors’ refusal to make a move for the player in the summer.
Man United were lacking in strikers aside Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcus Rashford for much of the January transfer window. Anthony Martial had gone to Seville on loan, Mason Greenwood was arrested for domestic violence and suspended by the club, and Edinson Cavani was in and out of hospital with an injury.
The German claims to have told the board that the club needed a striker or another striker, and favored Diaz, along with Dusan Vlahovic and Julian Alvarez, but got “no” as the answer.
“We lost three long-term attackers,” Rangnick said. “We should have tried to sign a player within our 48 hours, because we knew Mason would not be available and Anthony had already left on loan.
“We were also aware that Edinson might not be available for eight games out of 10, but we didn’t. There were a few of them: Diaz, who is now at Liverpool; Alvarez, who will play for Manchester City in the summer. And Wolhovic, who was at the time Still with Fiorentina.
“The answer was ‘No’ and that was it. I talked to the board of directors and I said to them ‘shouldn’t we at least talk and analyze and see if we can at least get a player, on loan or on a permanent deal?'”
“In the end the answer was ‘No’. They probably didn’t want to do any winter work. Maybe we should have at least discussed it internally, as it might be necessary and important. There would have been little notice anyway but still, 48 hours is 48 hours. It was probably worth a try at least. But we didn’t and it wasn’t done.”
It is understood that the club’s hierarchy chose to withdraw this route due to their fear that the new striker would be rejected by their incoming manager, which was unknown at the time.
