Luis Diaz remains one of the most talked-about names in Liverpool’s summer transfer window, and for good reason. On the latest episode of the Daily Red Podcast, contributor Dave Hendrick broke down the evolving situation with typical candour, highlighting the tension between the club’s stance and the Colombian winger’s apparent intentions.

As reported by David Ornstein and dissected by Hendrick, Liverpool have rejected a €67.5 million offer from Bayern Munich for Luis Diaz. But the message coming from Anfield is far from straightforward. According to Hendrick, “The line is Liverpool have no intention to sell. There’s no world in which Liverpool have no intention to sell and also no intention to extend his contract. That’s just not a real thing.”

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That contradiction speaks volumes. While the club are publicly firm, behind the scenes, it seems the narrative is being shaped for a potential exit. Hendrick added, “My guess is we don’t want to sell Luis Diaz to a European club unless we get a big fee because we have a big fee waiting for him from Saudi Arabia.”

The crucial detail in Ornstein’s report, and reinforced by Hendrick, is that Diaz “has made it known he wants to leave the club.” From there, the dominoes begin to line up. “If Diaz wants to leave, I don’t think there’s any chance we’re going to keep him at the club. I do think he’ll get sold,” said Hendrick.

He went on to explain how Liverpool appear to be leveraging interest from the Saudi Pro League to drive up the price: “I think we’re trying to push him that way.” This would echo the approach Liverpool have taken with other players. As Hendrick noted, “We’ve turned down bids from Napoli because I think we know there’s a bigger bid waiting from the Saudis.”

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Luis Diaz’s desire might be to play for clubs like Bayern or Barcelona, but Liverpool are clearly setting boundaries. Hendrick offered a stark take on the options facing Diaz: “Luis, you might want to go to Barca or Bayern, but your option might be staying on the contract that you’re not happy with or taking this enormous bag from Saudi.”

It is also worth noting that this is not the first time Diaz has shown willingness to move to Saudi Arabia. “He was willing to go to Saudi two summers ago,” Hendrick reminded listeners, implying this route is not entirely out of the question.

With Arne Slot at the helm and looking to evolve Liverpool’s forward line, Diaz’s exit could open doors for significant additions. Hendrick noted that Richard Hughes, Liverpool’s new sporting director, has made signing a “top number nine” a priority. Whether that is Alexander Isak, Victor Osimhen or Julian Alvarez remains to be seen, but it adds further weight to the idea that Diaz may be moved on to fund these ambitions.

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What’s becoming increasingly evident through the quotes and breakdowns in the Daily Red Podcast is that Liverpool are playing the long game. They are not in a rush, but the writing may already be on the wall. Hendrick summed it up succinctly: “If we didn’t think we could get [Isak], why wouldn’t we have bought a striker by now?”

Luis Diaz has been a valuable player for Liverpool since joining, but this summer could mark the end of his time at Anfield. Whether Bayern, Barcelona or Saudi Arabia becomes his next destination, the final decision will rest not just on fee, but on strategy, timing and leverage.