06 November 2023 , 07:21
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Alisson compared Luis Diaz 's "difficult moment" with his own struggles when his father died two years ago.
Diaz made his first return to action since his parents were kidnapped by a rebel group in Colombia on Sunday, with his father yet to be released. The attacker came off the bench to score an injury-time equaliser for Liverpool against struggling Luton.
He then revealed an emotional message of "Freedom for papa" as he celebrated his goal. The situation was reminiscent of when Alisson scored a dramatic goal of his own for the Reds, when they travelled to West Brom back in May 2021.
The scores were level with all four minutes of injury time up when the keeper went up for a corner and amazingly headed in. After the game, Alisson was emotional as he spoke of his father, who had died in February.
Jose Becker had passed away unexpectedly, with Alisson only missing one game in the aftermath. And Alisson has recalled that dark time as he revealed his hope that Diaz can find some comfort in scoring his crucial goal.
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"It says a lot about his character, about his inner strength. I think not many people can imagine what he is going through now. Even as we are close to him, of course, we are supporting him, we feel his pain, but for him it's a different level," he told Sky Sports.
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Luis Diaz revealed an emotional message about his father after scoring against Luton (AFP via Getty Images)"Football sometimes in dark moments can bring joy to people, can bring joy to somebody who is struggling, and I think football is bringing a slice of joy to Lucho at this time. We are together with him for whatever he needs, to take his time.
"He came, trained, came to the game, scored a fantastic goal for us that was really important, and we are with him 100 percent. Football always surprises, in a good way sometimes. It happened with me when I was going through a really difficult moment.
"It happened today, it happened other times for other people. I think when you are on the pitch you are focused on doing the job. I think he was focused on doing this, trying to help the team get the points, and he did it for us."
After the game, Diaz released a powerful statement begging for the release of his father. He is being held by rebel group ELN, with the Colombian government negotiating for his release amid a massive police search.
"Here’s not the player speaking. Today’s Lucho Díaz, the son of Luís Manuel Díaz. Mane, my dad, hard working man, family pillar… he’s now kidnapped. I ask ELN to release my father as soon as possible," he said.
"I also ask the international associations to work on that in order to guarantee his freedom. Every second, every minute we’re more worried. We’ve no words to describe our family’s terrible feelings, and it will be the same as long as he’s not back at home.
"I beg you to release my father right now, respecting his integrity. I want to thank to all Colombians and also the international community for your support. This goal is for the freedom of my father and all the kidnapped in my country. Thank you all for your support."