Luis Diaz hailed for 'outstanding improvement' as remarkable Liverpool fact emerges

Former Liverpool striker Neil Mellor described Luis Diaz's start to the season as 'outstanding', with the winger averaging a goal a game at the start of the new Premier League season.

The Colombian has netted five goals so far this term - one against Brentford before braces against Manchester United and Bournemouth - to give his overall goal tally since joining Liverpool in 2022 a more respectable look.

One of the main criticisms levelled at Diaz throughout his Liverpool career has been that he has not scored enough goals for the Reds. Prior to this season he had scored just 24 times in 98 appearances, but with five goals in six games in all competitions at the start of this season, Diaz has been one of the standout stars of the team's excellent start.

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Last season, it took until Liverpool's 24th Premier League match of the season for Diaz to score his fifth league goal, which puts into perspective just how much he has improved this term.

Speaking to club media, Mellor said: “Unbelievable. If you’re wondering when did Luis Diaz get to five goals last season in the Premier League? February. So it just shows the improvement he’s made this season. Outstanding, it really is.”

Only on two occasions has a Liverpool player started a Premier League season in better goal-scoring form than Diaz, with Michael Owen scoring six times in the Reds' first five games of the 2000-01 season, and Mohamed Salah managing the same feat in 2020-21.