Diaz Explains Bayern Choice Over Barcelona

Luis Diaz joined Bayern Munich from Liverpool in an $88 million transfer earlier this week, and he has explained his reasoning behind joining the Bundesliga club

Luis Diaz said that he decided to join Bayern Munich because it is a club that matches his ambition on the pitch.

The Colombian secured an $88 million move to the Bundesliga club on Wednesday, having made it abundantly clear in recent weeks that he wanted to leave Liverpool.

Diaz’s desire to depart Anfield, which originally surfaced in 2024, was largely driven by his frustration that he was not given the kind of offer he wanted in order to sign a contract extension at the club.

After a move to Barcelona was taken off the table following Marcus Rashford’s loan move to the Catalan club, Bayern was the only remaining viable option if Diaz wanted to continue playing at the top level in Europe.

“I’ve decided to join Bayern because it’s a club that fits with my goals,” Diaz explained. “My expectations are very big, so I wanted to join a big, ambitious club. We want to win everything here and I want to help the team.”

He added: “I’m very happy to be here in Munich at this great club. My first impressions have been very good. I haven’t had much time yet, but I’ve been given a very warm welcome and I’m really looking forward to getting to know everyone better.”

Diaz arrives as Bayern’s third most-expensive signing of all time, behind Harry Kane and Lucas Hernandez, but he is not giving much attention to the pressure that will come with his lofty price tag.

“I give everything for the team I play for,” Diaz said. “I can’t say if I’m worth the transfer fee. But I’m glad the club decided to sign me. I like this club and want to settle in here as quickly as possible.”

At 28 years old and with two years remaining on his contract at Liverpool, Diaz felt that his value would never be higher than it is now, and that is why he pushed so hard to leave this summer.

At Liverpool, Diaz was underpaid relative to his standing in the squad, with the likes of Federico Chiesa and Darwin Nunez both on higher salaries than the Colombia international.

Diaz will reportedly earn a gross salary in excess of $16 million per year at Bayern, which represents a huge increase on the player’s Liverpool salary.

The Athletic reported this week that Diaz first wanted to leave Liverpool in 2024, with his ambition to depart “hardening” this year when it became clear that Liverpool was not willing to pay him what he would have wanted in order to sign a new deal.

As for Bayern — the German club’s interest in Diaz emerged after it failed to sign Florian Wirtz, who was the club’s first-choice summer target.

Liverpool.com