It was lunchtime on February 4 and Jurgen Klopp, fresh from an unexpected purchase in the January sales, was doing his best to keep expectations in check.
'Let me say it like this,' Liverpool's manager began. 'If Luis Diaz would now come here, on to the football pitch, and immediately be at his absolute best and playing better than all the others that would be really strange. We (as a group) have worked together for a while. It needs time.'
Klopp's predictions about players aren't usually wrong but this one, about his recruit from Porto, has proven way off target. From the first time he touched the ball, as a substitute against Cardiff in the FA Cup, Diaz has looked like he has been at Liverpool for years — and has played accordingly.
Luis Diaz (centre) has hit the ground running brilliantly at Liverpool after arriving in January
The Colombian winger signed from Porto after a £8million down payment out of a £37.5m fee
To say Diaz has hit the ground running would be a glaring understatement. He has come out of the blocks quicker than a sprinter in the Olympic 100 metres final and the impact he has had on Liverpool's season — the latest stellar contribution coming at Villarreal — has been profound.
Speed is key to this story, from the way Liverpool moved to secure his signature in the final week of the window to how he has adjusted to life on Merseyside, where the influence of Spanish speakers such as Thiago Alcantara and James Milner should not be overlooked.
Tottenham wanted to land Diaz, Ralf Rangnick was determined that he should go to Manchester United while David Moyes had ambitions to take him to West Ham, but Liverpool — with a £8million down payment to Porto out of a fee of £37.5m — swooped for a man they initially had intended to recruit this summer.
The business was impressive but, as Klopp warned, adjusting to life in his team is something
