Jamie Carragher has defended Liverpool’s decision to sell Luis Diaz in the summer and thinks Mohamed Salah should start against Sunderland on Wednesday night
Jamie Carragher has defended Liverpool’s decision to sell Luis Diaz to Bayern Munich in the summer. The Colombia international joined the Bavarian giants in a deal worth up to £65.5m and he has enjoyed an explosive start to life in Germany.
Diaz has returned 12 goals and six assists from his first 19 appearances for Munich. He is also yet to taste defeat, failing to win only once, with Vincent Kompany’s side’s only loss of the season so far coming against Arsenal last week in a game the 28-year-old missed through suspension.
In contrast, Liverpool have struggled following Diaz’s departure and have lost nine of their last 13 matches in all competitions.
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Arne Slot’s team at least returned to winning ways away at West Ham United at the weekend, bouncing back from successive heavy defeats to Manchester City, Nottingham Forest and PSV Eindhoven as Alexander Isak scored his first Premier League goal for the club.
But the Dutchman has faced scrutiny for the reigning Premier League champions’ poor form, with the pressure only heightened by a £450m summer spending spree which saw the Reds break the British transfer record twice.
The majority of Liverpool’s summer signings are yet to prove themselves at Anfield, though, with none of them enjoying the same impact as Diaz at Bayern.
But despite the contrasting fortunes, Carragher insists the Reds made the right decision in selling Diaz in the summer.
“That’s where I think the hierarchy of the club has said Arne Slot is (only) the head coach,” he said on the latest episode of The Overlap Fan Debate, brought to you by Sky Bet. “Arne Slot might’ve wanted to keep him.
“But they (the Liverpool hierarchy) said he’s 28, if we give him a new contract he’ll be on massive money.
“It was a good deal for Liverpool, and he’s going to look good in the Bundesliga because it’s not as good as the Premier League.
“Diaz was a very good player for Liverpool, but he wasn’t great – he wasn’t Firmino, he wasn’t Mane, he wasn’t Salah.
“He was a good player; Liverpool got some good years out of him and got a good price – it was a good deal for Liverpool.
“What they haven’t done is replace him, but if Wirtz becomes what we hope him to be, he’s a different player but he’s that player between the lines to the left, so you’ll get that from him.”
It is worth noting that Diaz wanted to leave Liverpool after failing to agree a new contract with the Reds, and had also looked to depart in the summer of 2024 only to be denied a move to Man City.
Meanwhile, Carragher also shared his belief that Mohamed Salah will return to the Liverpool starting XI against Sunderland as he admitted he thinks the Egyptian has been overly criticised this season.
The 33-year-old dropped to the bench for the Reds’ win over West Ham and was left as an unused substitute, with his absence being the first time Slot had not included him in a Premier League starting XI.
The forward has come in for increased criticism for below-par performances in recent weeks amid Liverpool’s struggles, while he has been unable to match the levels that saw him help fire the Reds to the title last season.
But despite Liverpool returning to winning ways at West Ham without Salah, Carragher insists he should start against Sunderland.
“I think Salah goes back in against Sunderland,” he said. “I think in certain away games, you take him out, so he doesn’t play every week.
“I’ve been critical of Mo Salah off the pitch this season, but on the pitch, I think he’s had too much criticism. The team’s not playing well, so he’s not going to be as good.
“We’re talking about the first season he’s ever had where he’s not been amazing – even though Liverpool have had poor seasons over the last seven or eight years, Salah has still scored 30 goals. It’s the first time he’s ever had a poor start to the season.
“You look at the make-up of the squad and people saying don’t play him, if you look at how they played (vs West Ham), they basically played without a right winger, because they haven’t got one behind him to replace him.
“Yes, they won and everyone is happy, but that’s not the template for Liverpool going forward as a team.
“You’re pleased Joe Gomez is back, but he’s not a flying full-back and he has no winger in front of him, so he almost had to be the right winger. That’s not a progression or something to do going forward, that was a job for the last game.
“You haven’t got any cover for the wide players. Cody Gakpo must play every game, and Salah does, because there’s nobody behind them.”
