The latest ECHO tour diary entry as Liverpool forward Luis Diaz prepares to say his goodbyes
Isak during pre-season with Newcastle. (Photo by Serena Taylor/Newcastle United via Getty Images)
After landing on Sunday evening from Hong Kong, the first full day of Tokyo for Liverpool involved a trip to Ekoin Temple, in the Ryogoku district.
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The Reds squad took part in a meditation session and were guided by a monk throughout, ahead of returning to training later in the day. The venue also serves as a resting place for some Japan citizens and it is impossible that a thought was not spared by the players for their beloved friend Diogo Jota when it was time to reflect in solemn silence.
Liverpool announced a series of further tributes for their No.20 on Saturday and further tributes are planned for Wednesday friendly here, including a bespoke emblem on the players’ shirts in memory of the popular Portuguese after his fatal car accident earlier this month. A sculpture at Anfield has been commissioned to further commemorate Jota, with discussions ongoing as to how it will look.
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Luis Diaz was part of the contingent that visited the temple but he is now due to leave the group before wrapping up the formalities of his £65.5m move to Bayern Munich, after an agreement was reached between the clubs on Sunday evening.
He is now set to say his goodbyes to his colleagues ahead a medical with Bayern and in-house club duties with his new employers. It brings an end to a three-and-a-half-year stay for the player affectionately known as ‘Lucho’ on Merseyside, where he won two Carabao Cups, an FA Cup and, of course, the Premier League.
The Colombia international will become the third most expensive sale of all time on Merseyside behind the £75m switch that saw Luis Diaz join Barcelona in 2014 and the £142m deal that also took Philippe Coutinho to the Catalan side four years later.
How that sum is reinvested, as interest in wantaway Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak goes on, will be fascinating in the coming days and weeks. It’s understood sporting director Richard Hughes has flown out to Asia to be part of the contingent, which should theoretically make the timezone difference easier to navigate, should be enter intro dialogue with Newcastle’s key decision makers, with the Magpies due to touch down in Korea for their own Asian tour. They were beaten 3-2 by Arsenal on Sunday evening in Singapore.
For now, though, Arne Slot is merely focusing on his preparation for Wednesday’s game with J-League strugglers Yokohama F Marinos at the Nissan Stadium.