Three Reasons Why Luis Diaz Will Succeed at Bayern Munich

 

Bayern Munich has signed Luis Diaz from Liverpool, making the club’s first major signing of the 2025 summer transfer window. After failing to bring in Florian Wirtz and Nico Williams, Bayern fans were relieved to finally lock in a versatile striker who can complement the likes of Jamal Musiala this week.

Many critics pointed to Diaz’s high price tag (reportedly €75 million) and age of 28 as obstacles to the deal, making it difficult to assess him as an acceptable risk. However, Diaz will succeed at Bayern, something that his compatriot James Rodriguez and former teammate Sadio Mane have failed to do.

Off-ball Movement

Looking back at Diaz’s goals in the Premier League last season (NBCSports via YouTube), all 13 of his goals came from Diaz’s unique movement, which not only created space for himself, but also often created opportunities for his teammates. Granted, Diaz is not a pure ball-playing player.

The biggest beneficiaries of Diaz’s arrival will be Musiala and Alphonso Davies. Diaz likes to create opportunities for his teammates with quick passes and clever lobs. Kingsley Coman, Leroy Sane and Serge Gnabry have always been unable to create opportunities for Davies on the left wing.

In Vincent Kompany’s first season as Bayern coach, Bayern did not perform well in low defense. Diaz is not an all-round player, but his movement should be able to inspire other players to attack in the offensive area and cause trouble for other Bundesliga teams.

Commitment

Diaz is known for his relentless commitment on both offense and defense. He wins a lot of ground duels and is good at recovering the ball. He is particularly good at high pressure and always fills in in time to help Davies be caught by the opponent in the overlapping run.

Diaz will be a great choice to change the pace of the game when paired with Coman. Coman is faster at any distance, but Diaz has hidden acceleration ability, which can create excellent opportunities if he can replace Coman. No right-back in the world wants to play after chasing Koeman for 60 minutes and then face a new Diaz.

Playing time and flexibility

Except for a six-month absence due to a knee injury (left knee ligament) in 2022, Diaz has missed only eight games in total in his seven years of professional football. In the past two seasons, he has played a total of 9,000 minutes for club and country and has been in good form.

Diaz can play as a left winger, attacking midfielder and pure striker. He performed well as a false nine during his time at Liverpool, although this may not be possible until Musiala recovers or Harry Kane is out for a long time.

At 28 years old, Diaz should be able to maintain the same level of play for another three or four years. Many commentators predict that he will eventually join the Saudi Professional League, which may well mean that his transfer from Liverpool will come with a transfer clause. However, Diaz is very loyal to the team and he hopes to fulfill his full contract in Munich.