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Liverpool head coach Jurgen Klopp said preparation for Sunday\u2019s 3-0 home win against Nottingham Forest had been \u201cthe most difficult I\u2019ve ever had in my life\u201d.<\/p>\n
Reds forward Luis Diaz did not feature in the Premier League clash at Anfield after reports that his parents had been kidnapped in Colombia and Klopp said the player had returned home to be with family members.<\/p>\n
Liverpool confirmed an \u201congoing situation involving the family of Luis Diaz\u201d earlier on Sunday and Colombia\u2019s president said Diaz\u2019s mother \u201chas been rescued\u201d but his father remains missing.<\/p>\n
Klopp said: \u201cThe game preparation was the most difficult I\u2019ve ever had in my life. I didn\u2019t expect that, I wasn\u2019t prepared for it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want to make the game bigger than it was, but definitely, we tried to help Luis with the fight we put in because obviously we want to help and we cannot really help.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo the only thing we can do is fight for him and that\u2019s what the boys did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Liverpool secured their fifth straight home Premier League win to move three points behind leaders Tottenham.<\/p>\n
But Klopp said: \u201cHow can you make a football game really important on a day like this? It\u2019s really difficult. I\u2019ve never struggled with that in my life.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe heard late last night about it. We spoke to Luis, he wanted to go home\u2026Then we got the news with his mum, which is fantastic, and since then nothing really.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are obviously the first people to get involved and we try to have knowledge of everything as much as we can, but we don\u2019t want to disturb in any way the important people there, we just want to support, that\u2019s it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Liverpool said in a statement that they were supporting the player. It read: \u201cLiverpool Football Club can confirm it is aware of an ongoing situation involving the family of Luis Diaz in Colombia.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is our fervent hope that the matter is resolved safely and at the earliest possible opportunity. In the meantime, the player\u2019s welfare will continue to be our immediate priority.\u201d<\/p>\n
Colombia\u2019s president Gustavo Petro said on X, formerly known as Twitter: \u201cIn an operation in Barrancas, Luis Diaz\u2019s mother has been rescued, we continue the search for the father.\u201d<\/p>\n
The country\u2019s football federation said in a statement that the kidnapping was regrettable and urged authorities to rescue Diaz\u2019s father.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Colombian Football Federation rejects the security situation that the parents of our player Luis D\u00edaz are going through,\u201d they said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom the FCF we express our solidarity with him and his entire family and we call for the relevant authorities to act as quickly as possible to resolve the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Liverpool signed Diaz from Porto in January 2022 in an initial \u00a337.5million deal that included a potential extra \u00a312.5million in add-ons.<\/p>\n
The 26-year-old winger has made 11 appearances this season and scored three goals.<\/p>\n
Diaz was an unused substitute for Thursday\u2019s 5-1 Europa League win against Toulouse after starting the Premier League victory over Everton last weekend.<\/p>\n
He was not in the 18-strong squad that Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp named for Forest\u2019s Premier League visit to Anfield.<\/p>\n