Liverpool's Diaz emotionally pleads for his father's release
Colombian international striker Luis Diaz of Liverpool FC has made an emotional plea to his father's kidnappers to release his dad "immediately" and "end this painful wait". The 26-year-old published his appeal "in the name of love and compassion" after scoring a late 1:1 (0:0) equalizer in the league match at promoted Luton Town.
While celebrating, he pulled up his jersey and presented a shirt with the words: "Libertad para papa", "Freedom for dad". He later shared via Instagram: "Our concern is growing by the minute. My mother, my brothers and I are desperate, scared and have no words to describe what we feel." This suffering will "not be over until we have him back home with us".
Diaz's parents were abducted last weekend at a petrol station in their hometown of Barrancas in northern Colombia. While the mother was freed on the same day, the father is apparently in the hands of the guerrilla group Ejercito de Liberacion Nacional (National Liberation Army/ELN). Following negotiations with the ELN, Colombia's Interior Minister Luis Fernando Velasco had hopefully said on Saturday that Luis Manuel Diaz would be "released soon". A "safe area is now to be agreed for the handover".
The ELN has been active in Colombia for decades and has repeatedly caused a stir with kidnappings of Colombians and foreign nationals as well as attacks. In 2003, the ELN also became known in Germany when it kidnapped the German tourist Reinhilt Weigel. Weigel was only released after 74 days. The Diaz kidnapping case caused great sympathy in the soccer scene. FIFA President Gianni Infantino sent "support and prayers" to the Diaz family.
Team manager Jürgen Klopp hugged Diaz after the game. "It was wonderful and emotional and fantastic," he said of his joker's goal, "but it doesn't solve the real problem." Diaz was powerless, but the game and the training sessions distracted him a little. There was encouraging news from Colombia, "but the one we all want to hear wasn't there yet".
In light of his father's kidnapping by the ELN, Liverpool FC's Luis Diaz expressed his heartfelt plea for his father's immediate release during a post-match interview in the Premier League. With Liverpool securing a draw against Luton Town, Jürgen Klopp, the team manager, offered his support to Diaz, acknowledging that his inspiring goal couldn't fully alleviate the tense situation his family was facing.
Source: www.ntv.de
