One of the more well-travelled players in our listings, for various reasons, Diouf appears several times but the first was very early - number 15, while at Liverpool.
Liverpool bought Diouf from Lens for £10 million, prior to Senegal's impressive 2002 run in the World Cup, despite having talks with Charlton. Gerard Houllier put his faith in Diouf and made the choice to sign him and not take up the option of permanently signing Nicolas Anelka. Diouf was originally signed as a striker but ended up being utilised mainly on the right wing. Diouf scored just six goals in his first season including three in the Worthington Cup. Liverpool went on to defeat Manchester United 2-0 in the final that year, ensuring he got a medal after starting in the final.
In the 2003/04 season, he became the first Liverpool player to wear the number nine shirt to fail to score a goal in an entire season. He made 33 appearances and went over 14 months without a goal. Despite his impressive start to his Liverpool career where he scored a brace on his Anfield debut against Southampton, he only managed 6 goals in 80 appearances, failing to live up to expectations. Toward the end of his spell at Liverpool new manager Rafael Benitez loaned Diouf to Bolton Wanderers on a season-long loan. During his time at Liverpool he was regarded as a total failure.
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