Ecuadorian midfielder Moises Caicedo is now a Chelsea player despite a late attempt by Liverpool to sign him.
Moises Caicedo and Chelsea looked destined for each other throughout the entire summer. It appeared only a matter of Chelsea offering a fee Brighton deemed acceptable.
In the end, that is what happened, except Liverpool decided to get involved at the death. They offered a fee of £110 million for Moises Caicedo, which Brighton accepted.
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However, it was little too late for Liverpool – Caicedo’s mind was already set on Chelsea. With personal terms agreed, not even a meeting with Jurgen Klopp could persuade Caicedo to choose Merseyside.
Liverpool have lost more than a player here, they’ve lost credibility. Especially when you consider that as a result of this fiasco they may also lose out on Southampton’s Romeo Lavia to Chelsea as well.
It was only a couple of years ago they had this aura about them, both on and off the pitch. They were relentless on the pitch and intelligent off it. They were decisive in the transfer market, the team who signed Mane and Salah. The team who put deals in place for the likes of Keita and Dias before the transfer window opened so they could join as soon as possible.
All of that is gone now. Now they don’t look so intelligent in the transfer market. The Caicedo bid was out of the blue, and somewhat inexplicable. The Lavia deal is just disastrous. They spent months haggling over which digit to put next to the 40 million in their bid. Now that Chelsea are involved, the price is going to be £60 million. Liverpool probably could have had him for £50 million.
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All the more damning is that Klopp’s team has lost its place as the destination of choice for up-and-coming players. To Chelsea, of all teams. Chelsea are a basket case. If players choose them over Liverpool, something has gone wrong.
Of course, no team can do anything when Todd Boehly does his disruptor act – just ask Arsenal about Mudryk. However, the writing would seem to be on the wall. Liverpool are scrapping it out with everyone else again, both on and off the pitch.
