August 14 – Having seemingly smashed the British transfer record by agreeing to lay out £111 million for Ecuadorian international midfielder Moises Caicedo from under the noses of Chelsea, Liverpool are the ones with egg on their face after the player opted to join the London club instead, according to multiple reports.
Chelsea, who have had a series of bids rejected by Brighton this summer, have reportedly upped the price to £115 million with the player due to undergo a medical later today before signing a staggering eight-year deal.
Liverpool thought they had their man on Friday but without apparently checking to see where Caicedo actually wanted to play.
The fee means Chelsea will break the British record twice in 2023, following the £107 million purchase of Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez in January.
Caicedo was left out of Brighton’s squad for their season-opening win at home to Luton Town.
Brighton manager Roberto de Zerbi said he had “already forgotten” about Caicedo, adding: “Bigger clubs can buy our players but they can’t buy our soul or spirit.”
Caicedo will be Chelsea’s eighth signing of the summer, following Axel Disasi, Christopher Nkunku, Nicolas Jackson, Lesley Ugochukwu, Angelo Gabriel, Robert Sanchez and Diego Moreira.
New manager Mauricio Pochettino has been tasked with overhauling the squad and vastly improving on last season’s 12th-place finish in the Premier League.
Mateo Kovacic, Edouard Mendy, Kalidou Koulibaly, N’Golo Kante, Mason Mount, Kai Havertz, Christian Pulisic, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Ethan Ampadu, Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang, Abdul Rahman Baba and former captain Cesar Azpilicueta have all departed so far this summer.
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