Luis Díaz set to face Manchester United again in the Champions League, this time with Bayern Munich

Some opponents start to feel like habit. For Luis Díaz, Manchester United is becoming exactly that. The Champions League league phase draw has once again put him on a collision course with a team he has had thoroughly figured out for the past three years, though this time he will do it in a different shirt: Bayern Munich's.

United is one of eight opponents drawn against the Bavarian club in this new league phase, and for "Lucho," that name on the calendar brings back fond memories. During his time at Liverpool, the Colombian scored four goals in three matches against the Red Devils, both at Old Trafford and at Anfield.

It all started right after he arrived in the Premier League. In April 2022, freshly settled in England, Díaz opened the scoring in the 5th minute in what ended up being a 4-0 rout for Liverpool at home. A scoring debut against United that already hinted at what was to come.

Two years later he repeated the trick, this time on the road at Old Trafford. In April 2024, he again put his team ahead with a right-footed finish in a match that ended up being a wild one, finishing 2-2.

The most emphatic chapter came in the season Liverpool went on to win the Premier League title. In September 2024, Díaz scored a brace away from home (one header and one with his right foot) in a 3-0 rout that made it clear, once again, that United simply could not find a way to stop him.

A reunion with history behind it

Now, in his second Champions League campaign wearing Bayern's colors, the Guajiro will once again cross paths with this all too familiar opponent, and once again at Old Trafford. The question many are already asking is simple: will United's luck against Díaz hold up, even with a different crest on his chest?

Soccer doesn't always respect streaks once players switch clubs, but some players seem to have a special radar against certain opponents. Díaz, with his pace and his knack for arriving in the box, already showed in England that he knows how to read the gaps United's defense leaves open. Now, with the added demands of wearing the Bayern shirt and in a league phase format that punishes any lapse, that track record will be one of the most repeated storylines heading into the match.