West Ham manager David Moyes has revealed that the club were ‘quite far down the line’ for a deal to sign Luis Diaz.
The 26-year-old eventually joined Premier League rivals Liverpool and has made a superb start to life in England.
Speaking during the pre-Wolves press conference, Moyes confirmed that the Hammers were in talks to bring the Colombian to the London Stadium before the Reds’ stepped in.
David Moyes: We were in advanced talks to sign Luis Diaz for West Ham and thought we’d landed him – before the big boys stepped in. @MirrorFootball https://t.co/EXeb2A6UfC
— Darren Lewis (@MirrorDarren) February 25, 2022
It’s true. I spoke with Luis Diaz on the phone and we were quite far down the line to sign him from Porto. My understanding is Liverpool were going to come in for him in the summer, and I was going to try and get him in January. I don’t know if us trying to get him in January affected Liverpool’s decision but he’s a really good player. I had a period where I thought we were on our own. We spoke with the agent in London and got it moving. Then other clubs came onto it. The club were ready to make offers for the correct players and sadly we didn’t quite get there.
Moyes went on to say that he ‘really hoped’ Diaz – already hailed as ‘exceptional’ by Jurgen Klopp – chose West Ham during negotiations.
Tottenham were the other side also believed to be in the mix to land the 33-cap winger but Liverpool won the battle.
This season Diaz has scored 17 times and provided six assists in 33 appearances across all competitions – including one goal for Klopp’s side.
READ WEST HAM VERDICT
Well, this would’ve been a marquee signing and then some.
Whilst supporters will be pleased to discover the calibre of player the club were pursuing remains high, many will question why alternatives weren’t outlined as West Ham ended the window without a single signing.
Some could also question the timing of Moyes’ reveal as the Irons face Liverpool and the £36million valued Colombian next week. This has all the makings of a sting in the tail.
