Rio Ferdinand has revealed that Liverpool winger Luis Diaz is his Premier League signing of the season.
The Premier League legend was speaking on Rio Ferdinand Presents FIVE ahead of the Reds’ meeting with Villarreal.
Ferdinand, Joel Beya and Stephen Howson hosted a special show in which they picked their standout players and managers this season.
Diaz is an unsurprising choice for Signing of the Season given the impact he has made at Liverpool since joining.
The Reds originally planned to sign the Colombia international in the summer.
However, Tottenham approached Porto in January, so the Anfield hierarchy acted quickly and accordingly.
Liverpool snapped up Diaz for a reported £37million, a fee which is already looking like a bargain.
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And according to Portuguese outlet SIC – via The Mirror – the 25-year-old is reportedly on £56,000-a-week.
If true, this makes Liverpool’s transfer feat all the more impressive, because Diaz has been absolutely incredible.
“He’s like a trigger”
Ferdinand explained why he feels the Anfield newcomer is worthy of earning the Signing of the Season award.
“Luis Diaz, the impact he’s had at Liverpool, and especially in the front areas,” he said.
“We were saying before he came, ‘if one or two of them get injured up front, they’re going to be losing, the quality drops down dramatically.
“When he starts, he’s probably vying now to be in the first three.
“Like, Firmino would struggle to get in there, he probably gets in ahead of Jota now as if they’re putting their best team in a Champions League final.
“That’s how much of an impact he’s made since he’s come. He has just been a breath of fresh air.
“You watch him play, on the ball he’s brilliant… but his reaction when they lose the ball is unreal.
“He’s like a trigger, bang, go go and get it back. For those reasons, he’s the standout signing of the season for me.”