Arne Slot has two new Liverpool options as fans wish could finally come true

Luis Diaz has declared he's happy at Liverpool. Kopites would hope that the words coming from the Colombian's mouth would put to bed speculation around his future. That might not be the case.

A recent report from Diaz's homeland has claimed that his representatives have a meeting set up with a Spanish club next week. That is most likely to be Barcelona after the winger's father admitted it was a 'dream' of his son's to play for the La Liga giants.

The rumours are likely to continue. But as things stand, Arne Slot will be planning for his maiden season in the Anfield hot seat with Diaz. The 27-year-old has been a regular since arriving from Porto in January 2022. He virtually became an instant starter as he took up the berth on the left-hand side - which pushed Sadio Mane into a central role as Jurgen Klopp’s side fell just two games short of achieving an unprecedented Quadruple.

In total, Diaz has made 98 appearances for Liverpool, scoring 24 times and creating 10. Those stats would be higher if not for a six-month absence because of a knee injury suffered at Arsenal in October 2022.

When at his zenith, Diaz is electric and an opposition defender's nightmare. Yet the one slight criticism is that he lacks end product in the final third. Mane was a regular provider throughout his six years on Merseyside but Diaz has been found wanting at times.

That might be because he has played too much. Perhaps there has been an over-reliance on him down the left-hand side. Diogo Jota has struggled for fitness while Darwin Nunez has underlined his best position as a centre-forward.

Liverpool are said to be in the market for a new attacker in the summer transfer window. However, a long-term successor for Mo Salah may be what they are trying to unearth. The Reds' talisman has a year left on his contract and plans will need to be afoot if he's to depart in 2025.

But easing the burden on Diaz may also be needed. In the 2023-24 season, he started 42 of the 51 games he played in. Having someone who can rotate with Diaz could augment his goal contributions.

Slot will undoubtedly be watching the European Championships and keeping a keen eye on the players he will be inheriting. And he may already have been given a glimpse of two options who could operate on the left flank.

There have been sections of supporters who have clamoured for Cody Gakpo to regularly take up a spot on the flank. It's the position where he plundered nine goals and provided 12 assists in 14 league games for PSV in the first half of 2022-23. But after joining for up to £44 million, he was converted into a striker by Jurgen Klopp. Per Tranfermrkt, he has played in the role only 15 times in 79 outings - with just six coming as starts.

But Gakpo underlined his qualities out wide in the Netherlands' 2-1 win over Poland. He bagged Ronald Koeman's side's equaliser and ran amok throughout the encounter. Koeman heaped praise on the 24-year-old after the triumph.

Coming from Feyenoord, Slot would have watched Gakpo plenty of times operating on the left. Perhaps a positional change could be in the offing should he wish.

And interestingly, Dominik Szoboszlai was deployed on the left wing for Hungary. Signed for £60 million from RB Leipzig last summer, Szoboszlai has chiefly played as a centre-midfielder for Liverpool. However, he was versatile for Leipzig and is stationed wherever deemed most effective for Hungary.

Rather than featuring in the engine room, Szoboszlai played on the left flank in Hungary's curtain-raiser against Switzerland. By his own admission, the 24-year-old didn't have his best game in the 3-1 loss yet his teasing cross assisted Barnabás Varga's consolation goal. WhoScored gave Szoboszlai a match rating of 7.4, which was the best of his team and only bettered by three Switzerland players.

Towards the end of 2023-24, Szobsozlai lost his starting berth in Klopp's side. And with Slot preferring a 4-2-3-1 formation, there have also been some questions about where he could fit in. He’s not a holding midfielder while the more advanced role could suit Alexis Mac Allister perfectly. The answer could be a positional switch.