Colombian police are searching a mountain range in the north of the country for the kidnapped father of the Liverpool forward Luis Díaz.
Díaz’s mother has been rescued but the Colombian authorities have stepped up the search for his father and are in contact with the player.
Police have been carrying out aerial patrols across the Perija mountain range, which straddles the border with Venezuela and is covered by a forest. More than 100 military personnel have also been deployed in the operation.
In a post on social media, Colombian police director general William Salamanca was shown visiting the operation to “recognise our commandos for their bravery and commitment to rescue him safe and sound”.
Police have offered a reward worth about £39,000 for information leading to the rescue of Luis Manuel Díaz. On Monday Salamanca urged caution with regards to reports that Luis Manuel may already have been taken into Venezuela, pointing to the difficulty of crossing the Perija mountains.
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Both Fifa and the Colombian Football Federation have offered support to Díaz, 26, while Liverpool allowed the player to return home.
Speaking on Tuesday, the Liverpool assistant manager, Pepijn Lijnders, said: “We really care about him. The only thing now for us is that we try and support him as much as we can. A lot of things are out of our hands and we hope the authorities there can find his dad and that everything is good.
Diogo Jota holds up a shirt in support of his Liverpool team-mate after scoring in the 3-0 win over Forest
ANDREW POWELL/LIVERPOOL/GETTY
“We just pray for that. It is not right for me to sit here and tell the whole world what we are doing for Lucho. As long as we know we are doing the right thing for him, because he is one of us. He just knows that we are here for him.
“Our motto is ‘You’ll never walk alone’ so let’s just pray and hope that everything is quickly to a good situation again.”
Liverpool signed Díaz from Porto in January last year in an initial £37.5 million deal that included a potential extra £12.5 million in add-ons.
