Liverpool target Yan Diomande reveals sister's death at 15 drives his rise to stardom

Yan Diomande, the RB Leipzig winger Liverpool are negotiating to sign this summer, has spoken publicly for the first time about the death of his sister Roxane, who passed away at just 15 years old after having her drink spiked at a party.

The 19-year-old Ivory Coast forward, one of the most coveted young talents in European football after a breakthrough debut season in the Bundesliga, shared his story in a piece for The Players’ Tribune — writing directly to Roxane in a letter he says he could not bring himself to speak aloud.

“That was back when I used to have emotions. Now, I don’t feel anything,” Diomande wrote. “It’s like I’m not even human. Since you died, I’m just blank. I don’t even think I shed a tear the day they told me that you were gone. I was just in shock.”

The news arrived just weeks after Diomande had made his debut for Spanish club Leganes — at 18 years old, against Real Madrid. Roxane had shared in that joy. The call that followed was blunt and without warning.

“Somebody put something in her drink at a party, and she never woke up,” he recalled being told. “She is gone.”

Diomande’s path to that debut had been long and difficult. He endured failed trials at Bournemouth, Chelsea, Rangers, Olympiakos and Crystal Palace, and was unable to attract interest from MLS B teams, before eventually signing with Leganes and forcing his way into the first team.

His rise since has been meteoric. After establishing himself at Leipzig, he is currently representing Ivory Coast at the World Cup, having impressed in his country’s opening victory over Ecuador.

In his letter, Diomande said he still has no answers about what happened to his sister and acknowledged he may not want them. What he does know is the purpose her memory gives him.

“I try to trust God’s plan. It’s all I can do,” he wrote. “I don’t try to forget, because I know I won’t forget. All I can do is use the pain to work harder, and to do everything we dreamed about. Everything I do on a football pitch, it’s for you.”

Liverpool are currently in negotiations to secure Diomande’s signature ahead of next season, with the teenager having established himself as one of the standout performers in the Bundesliga during his debut campaign at Leipzig.