Jurgen Klopp on ‘emotional’ goal for Luis Diaz in Liverpool's Premier League draw with Luton Town - ‘A wonderful moment'
/dnl.eurosport.com/sd/img/placeholder/eurosport_logo_1x1.png){kind=logo}
Updated 05/11/2023 at 21:17 GMT
Luis Diaz fittingly earned Liverpool a 1-1 draw away at Luton Town in what has been a hugely traumatic past week for the Colombian. The 26-year-old's father was abducted in his native homeland, and he delivered a powerful message asking for him to be freed when celebrating the goal. Jurgen Klopp's side paid tribute to Diaz after the match, as The Reds cancelled out Tahith Chong's opener for Luton.
Klopp hails 'fantastic' Luis Diaz as Liverpool player awaits news on kidnapped father
Jurgen Klopp talked about ‘a wonderful moment’ for Luis Diaz after his goal rescued a 1-1 draw for Liverpool against Luton Town on Sunday.
The Colombian headed home in stoppage time to earn The Reds a point, and displayed an emotional message under his shirt asking for his father to be freed by the kidnappers who abducted him.
Klopp explained the goal was particularly poignant for Diaz, but stressed that the emphasis must be on freeing his father.
"A wonderful moment, but it doesn't change the situation,” he told Sky Sports. “The most important thing is that his father gets released.
"It is wonderful he wanted to be here. That's it, for us a super-important goal and for him very important and emotional, but that's it.
“When he is on the pitch he is always involved in special things. We knew he would be a threat; we didn't know how long he would play because he only had a few sessions with the team.
“But that is not the most important part today. He scored the goal but we need to see some improvement in Colombia."
Klopp reflected on the game as a whole and stressed that his side did not deserve more than the point they took away from Kenilworth Road.
"Credit to Luton and how they defended and how they set up, but it was mainly up to us. We had a lot of chances and should have had much more," he explained.
"It is a tricky task to stay fully concentrated. Looking at the game I think we didn't deserve more than a point. We could have won the game with the chances we had, but now looking at it, I think we deserved a point.”
/origin-imgresizer.eurosport.com/2023/11/05/3820371-77640348-2560-1440.jpg)
LUTON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 05: Darwin Nunez of Liverpool reacts after a missed chance during the Premier League match between Luton Town and Liverpool FC at Kenilworth Road on November 05, 2023 in Luton, England. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)
Image credit: Getty Images
Arguably the best of those chances fell to Darwin Nunez after the Uruguayan blazed a close-range effort over the bar, but Klopp was pleased with the forward’s overall display.
"He was offside once or twice," Klopp said. "The one ball Mo [Salah] squares with the header, I think Mo could do it himself, that was as well a big chance, but these are the moments.
"He was really involved in everything. It is fine. It is not our dream result, but we are always old enough to accept them."
- - -
TNT Sports presents the premium live sports rights previously carried by BT Sport including the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, Gallagher Premiership Rugby, Investec Champions Cup, EPCR Challenge Cup, MotoGP, Cricket, UFC, Boxing and WWE. The streaming home for TNT Sports in the UK is discovery+, where fans can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports, Eurosport and entertainment in one destination. You can also watch TNT Sports through BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media.
Scan me
Related Topics
Share this article