Stuart Pearce has a theory on why Arne Slot decided to sell Luis Diaz at Liverpool

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Stuart Pearce believes Liverpool may have sold Luis Diaz to help them balance the books in the summer.

Diaz’s sale was celebrated by most of Liverpool’s fanbase, especially since he only had two years left on his deal.

There were times when the Colombian was inconsistent, and even though he had his best season ever for Liverpool in the 2024-25 season, the £65.5 million fee Liverpool got for the attacker felt like a solid piece of business.

Most thought that Cody Gakpo would thrive as the only senior option on the left wing for Liverpool, but in reality, that’s been far from the case.

Some are now wondering whether Diaz should have even been moved on by Arne Slot, with Pearce now sharing his thoughts on his exit.

Stuart Pearce was left baffled by Liverpool’s decision to move Luis Diaz on

Although there may have been times when Diaz frustrated Liverpool and their fans, it has now been made clear how important he was to the Reds’ system.

Diaz and Darwin Nunez both put in plenty of defensive work when used in Slot’s starting XI, which allowed Mohamed Salah to stay forward constantly and not think about tracking back.

However, since Gakpo, Hugo Ekitike, and Alexander Isak are all attack-minded players, Slot’s system hasn’t worked as well as it did last term.

And now, while speaking on Premier League Productions’ The Weekend Wrap, Pearce has claimed that the Reds may have moved him on to balance the books.

“He’s made some big calls. Moving Nunez on, he didn’t hit the ground running; he was a fan favourite, his energy was a big thing,” he said.

“Diaz leaving was a big one for me. I didn’t see that. I didn’t see the need to ship him out; maybe they needed to balance the books.

“He’s tried to freshen the squad up, but in freshening the squad up, he’s taken it back a little bit.”

Liverpool could really do with Luis Diaz helping to lead their attacking line this season

One of Liverpool’s main areas of concern this term has been their attack.

Salah has been in poor form for the Anfield outfit, and Isak still hasn’t hit the ground running.

Some, such as Ekitike, have been among the Reds’ best performers, but in reality, Liverpool could really do with Diaz in their attack.

The speed, agility and ability to create something out of nothing are what Liverpool miss the most about Diaz, with the Colombian often triggering Liverpool’s attacks.

They’re also missing the number of goal contributions he got last term, and the fact that they only have Rio Ngumoha and Federico Chiesa to fall back on if Gakpo gets injured is concerning.

It’s still early in the season and things can change, but at the moment, Liverpool could really do with some of the Colombian’s magic, especially as their next games are against Real Madrid and Manchester City.