Agent said Liverpool wanted midfielder but he’s not started a game since

Follow us on Google Discover

If the agent of Zulte Waregem midfielder Pape Demba Diop is to be believed, clubs in France and Germany – not to mention Premier League giants Liverpool and Serie A champions Napoli – all lined up to express their interest in his client a couple of months ago. 

But does the Senegal international now find himself in a rather strange position? One where he is rated higher outside of Zulte Waregem than he is within the walls of his own club?

At the age of 20, with Liverpool and Napoli seemingly on his trail, and having forced his way into the senior Lions of Teranga squad ahead of next year’s African Cup of Nations, you’d be forgiven for assuming that Pape Diop is one of the first names on the Zulte Waregem team sheet. 

Well, not quite.  

In fact, Diop has only played six times for the club. Minutes have been a little easier to come by since Zulte Waregem were relegated to Belgium’s second tier but Diop is still yet to start a single game in 2023/24, all four of his league appearances coming from the substitute’s bench. 

Agent claims Liverpool like Pape Demba Diop

“Towards the end of last season, we were contacted by Liverpool,” Gerald Sago, Diop’s agent, told Tuttomercatoweb in July. “And we had preliminary meetings in Paris.   

“Three French teams have expressed interest. And some Italian teams, including Napoli.”

As things stand, however, there appears to be a clear disconnect between Diop’s reputation and his actual, on-pitch progress at club level.

The extent of the interest showed in the dynamic central midfielder appears driven by his outstanding performances at the U20 African Cup of Nations a few months back. Diop, after all, finished as the tournament’s Golden Boot winner while firing Senegal to glory. 

But, after leaving his teenage years behind at the start of September and after suffering a hamstring injury which threatens to further restrict his progress, one suspects Sago’s phone is not quite as hot now as it was at the start of the summer.