Liverpool stunned by ‘bombshell’ Diaz comment which is ‘bound to infuriate’ Slot

Luis Diaz has dropped a ‘bombshell’ which is ‘bound to infuriate’ manager Arne Slot: he is talking with other clubs, but also very specifically Liverpool.

Unnecessary clarification of the day
‘To be clear, this is not a form of doping, as no drugs are involved; just the monitoring of internal telemetry to optimise performance’ – Yaseen Zaman and Craig Hope, MailOnline, explaining how they are not in fact burying the biggest lede of all time in their long read on the biometric pills taken by England players to help monitor their levels this week.

The Mail gaze
The headline to that piece, by the way, is:

‘The £60 pills England stars are taking to get ready to win the World Cup: How scientists are getting Harry Kane and Co ready to beat the heat in America’

Nothing in all caps? A mention of ‘scientists’ but not ‘boffins’?! What is this woke nonsense?

A Coote angle
Mediawatch was more than happy to largely ignore the weird fascination in some circles with the revelation that former Premier League referee David Coote has landed himself work as a delivery driver.

But then Andy Dillon of The Sun, the national newspaper which seemed to positively delight more than anyone else in monetising the obvious personal demons afflicting someone thrust so deeply into the public eye, decided to write almost 1,000 words on, well, former Premier League referee David Coote getting work as a delivery driver.

Wait until he finds out about Mark Clattenburg’s exploits on Gladiator.

Coote finding work is apparently ‘an admirable act of humility and courage by someone who brought shame upon himself and his profession’.

On the other hand, it’s someone seeking gainful employment after making a fair few mistakes and being demonised to an unnecessary extent as a result, including people now obsessing over him becoming a delivery driver.

‘An admirable act of humility and courage’? Did Dillon expect Coote to keep turning up to Premier League games in full kit with a whistle? Or to post up outside Stockley Park as if nothing had happened? Is he only humble and courageous because someone shopped a video of him on their Ring doorbell to the dirt worst elements of the media?

‘When one of football’s most promising officials was captured on video, slurring his way through a foul-mouthed rant at Jurgen Klopp, it was easy to dismiss him as another pompous and pumped-up symbol of the Premier League era.’

It was far easier to hang him out to dry, as you and your employers well know.

‘But as this fascinating story unfolds, Coote more and more is morphing into its victim as opposed to its perpetrator.’

…because he now works for Evri? Actually, you might have a point…

‘The fact he is not too proud to take any job to get back on his feet suggests a person ready to pay their penance,’ Dillon writes, adding that we should ‘give credit to a bloke who made a mistake and is now trying to put it behind him without crying out for pity’.

And, well, yeah, fair play to Coote for recovering from an awful and harrowing state of affairs and trying to move on with his life. Mediawatch is just not sure if ‘man gets job’ really warrants a newspaper column, or whether squeezing every last drop of a story which stopped being in the public interest many months ago will be at all helpful to the man at the centre of it all.

What the ref?
Then again, the broader point of said column is that to ‘reflect on the foundations of fury that can make referees crumble so spectacularly as he did’.

So Mediawatch looks forward to The Sun avoiding the usual lamentable bandwagon of abuse which follows the next official to make any sort of mistake. That means no indignant Twitter reaction pieces. How refreshing.

Luis change
There is, however, exasperation and anger emanating from Liverpool, which feels weird. The Premier League champions have already made one exciting signing at right-back and are on the verge of shattering the British transfer record for the new enemy of Bruno Fernandes; what exactly could possibly be ‘bound to infuriate Kop boss Arne Slot’ at this stage?

It is admittedly not a great start that this story comes from The Sun, the bastion of truth and reliability when it comes to Liverpool. But Ken Lawrence has the scoop.

He says Luis Diaz has ‘opened the door to a shock £70million Barcelona move’ with a ‘bombshell’ statement in which he shockingly declared:

“The market is open and we’re trying to sort out what’s best for us. We’re talking with other clubs. It’s the transfer window, it’s normal. I’m very happy at Liverpool. From day one, they’ve made me feel really welcome. Right now we’re in contact with them because we’re speaking with other clubs.”

He went on to say that – and it might be best, dear reader, if you seek the closest seat at this point – “it’s up to” Liverpool, that “everything depends on them” and he “would be happy to stay there”.

And that – a player wanted by other clubs who is exploring his options in close conjunction with Liverpool – is definitely ‘bound to infuriate Kop boss Arne Slot’, who is apparently clinically insane.

READ MORE: Liverpool’s Sterling sale could be best move of all in summer transfer masterclass

Cheery Maguire
‘Man Utd ace Maguire parties with lookalike League Two star brother on stag do’ – The Sun website.

‘Harry Maguire joins lookalike brother on ‘boozy’ stag do in Croatia as Man Utd ace unwinds after nightmare season’ – Goal.com.

‘Lookalike brother’, FFS.