12 November 2023 , 17:00
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The incredible resilience and strength of character displayed by Luis Diaz during his family’s kidnap ordeal epitomises Liverpool's desire to keep fighting, after a miserable week for the Merseyside club.
Diaz somehow found the mental reserves to not only appear for the Reds twice in four days, even though his father had been snatched by armed terrorists, but to shine as a goalscorer, and the team’s best player in those two matches.
The Colombia international was one of the few bright notes in a week when they had produced shocking performances against Luton and then Toulouse, two clubs who are struggling with the threat of relegation in their respective leagues.
Even boss Jurgen Klopp admitted that football was the furthest thing from the minds of all his players, as they rallied around Diaz to give support during his time of need, as he endured 12 agonising days before Diaz Snr was eventually released unharmed.
Yet Alexis Mac Allister - who is a close friend of Diaz and occasionally translates for the winger and fellow South American Darwin Nunez in team meetings - believes the spirit shown by his teammate is the same required by Liverpool as they look to bounce back after two shock setbacks this weekend.
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“This past week, the goal at Luton and his performance in Toulouse shows how strong he is, how mature he is. He’s got his family behind him and he is here with us,” Mac Allister explained.
“We’re all so happy because it’s good news not just for him but for everyone. We were all behind him and everyone was waiting for this news. I’m so very glad for him, he is an amazing guy. I’m very close to him. And how he has responded is incredible.
Now, Mac Allister and the rest of the Liverpool team want to respond after only their second defeat of the season - with the first a controversial reverse at Spurs when they had a goal ruled out through VAR incompetence - in Toulouse.
Luis Manuel Diaz was eventually rescued after a terrifying ordeal (AFP via Getty Images)Klopp explained after that 3-2 Europa League loss that for his entire squad “it didn’t feel right that you play football in this moment, but we had to do it, and the boys found a way”. But that, perhaps, dampened the mood within the squad, as Diaz so visibly suffered as the threat to his father’s life grew with every day that passed without his release.
Now, after a poor draw at Luton and an embarrassing loss in Toulouse, they know they have to reflect on their teammate’s mental strength, and Mac Allister said: “Look, we have to improve, we have to respond.
“We have to go again on Sunday and show a reaction, because we weren’t good enough, defensively and over the pitch. We were not good enough defensively, we missed too many challenges and that is not good enough with a high line.”
His team Harvey Elliott agreed. He pulled no punches as he admitted that Liverpool simply didn’t deserve the late equaliser in Toulouse, which was eventually ruled out after another VAR farce.
Luis Diaz pictured with his mum and dad before the ordeal (Instagram)
Luis Diaz's father is consoled by his wife Cilenis Marulanda (AFP via Getty Images)The Bulgarian referee actually awarded the goal which would have made the score 3-3 after the VAR review, but then swiftly changed his mind, and overturned it for a handball by Mac Allister much earlier in the build-up.
The midfielder was astonished, admitting: “It hit my chest first and not my arm, so it’s weird it was given. It’s especially weird because the referee said “goal” first, but 10 seconds later changed his decision.” Elliott though, refused to blame that controversial VAR decision, which goes against UEFA’s own guidelines, and was widely condemned by the football world.
“We didn't deserve to win or even draw at the end of the day. So we’ve got to take it on the chin, we’ll reflect and make sure it doesn’t happen again.
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“We can’t look for excuses. We weren’t really there throughout the whole game and we didn’t deserve to come away with anything. So we have to use that as motivation to go out on the weekend to make sure we put it right, and not the VAR decision. We have a chance to put it right, so we need to go into the international break with a positive result.”